Lucky Island
by Heero91
Summary: Welcome dear most fortunate contestants, we are pleased to announce that you have been volunteered for our most prestigious competition. Please take the time to enjoy all the sights of our lucky island competition and meet with the affectionate locals. HinaSasu...eventually
1. Waking up in Paradise

Title; Lucky

Disclaimer; Nope I don't own any of the Naruto characters.

Chapter 1-

* * *

I remember my first thoughts pretty well, incredulously wondering just how drunk I'd gotten to end up on the kitchen floor instead of in my bed. Of course that line of thought died when I realised I hadn't been out drinking the night before. I'd been working all night on my midterms.

I bolted up onto my hands and knees cringing as an ache in my back made itself known, the grimy filth covered floor made me feel distinctly nauseous as I blinked around the darkened room. I couldn't make out much past the vague dark shapes of what seemed to be a kitchen though I couldn't be sure. I groped around in the darkness for a moment feeling distinctly foolish as my hand passed over something sharp, I hissed and drew it back pressing the small wound against my jeans leg. More cautiously I reached out again and found a small bag opposite whatever had cut me.

Amongst the feel of cloth and leather I found plastic and pulled free a flashlight. With a sharp click the bags other items were revealed, a pair of boots and an old t-shirt, I tore the right sleeve off the shirt for a make shift bandage and pulled on the remains of the t-shirt and the worn boots over my bare feet.

I shone the faint light over the room lighting up a busted sink filled with sludgy water, a fridge missing its door and filled with rancid looking leftovers, some damaged cupboards, a boarded up window the glass of which was shattered and scattered across the floor and a door unadorned and undamaged.

I crept to the door over the broken glass and tried the handle. The door swung open with a small push and a rackety click click click that filled me with dread, right now I couldn't help but feel that silence was one of my few defences against something horrible that shadowed this place.

The other room was much better lit dotted with candles but it wasn't what really drew my attention, backed into one of the corners were a trio of bright featured people. At the front clutching a baseball bat in a pose the was more frightened than threatening was a well-dressed blonde with blue eyes that seemed eerily bright in the low light. Behind him was another blonde wearing a pair of no doubt fashionable spectacles and dressed in a professional manner that might have made her anything from a secretary to an accountant. The last woman was the most unique by far however with her bob cut pink hair and lab coat. In all I felt strangle underdressed in my ancient jeans and edited t-shirt.

"Who are you?" questioned the pink haired woman regaining her composer quicker than her blonde companions, she attempted to step forward but the blonde man barred her path protectively. She slapped away the arm with a stern look that seemed super effective on the man.

"He's a kid Naruto, I doubt he's responsible for this." She bit out stepping closer to me, nearer now I realised she had bright emerald eyes and was probably a few years younger than I'd originally put her at.

"Sasuke Uchiha." I answered roughly my throat dry and brittle, awkwardly I extended a hand unsure of what the polite procedure was in this scenario, there probably wasn't one.

"Sakura Haruno, and this is Naruto and Ino." She offered shaking my hand and gesturing to her still weary companions, a gentle reassuring smile ghosted her lips and I felt somewhat reassured by it.

"Do you…" I drifted off in the question unsure of how exactly to finish it.

"We all woke up in different rooms, no idea when or how we arrived in this god forsaken place." The blonde man, Naruto, answered gesturing to the three other open doors. Counting our four there were thirteen in all, seven on this floor and six more along the second floor balcony. I quickly asked if they were locked.

"Yeah, they might be like ours were, with someone inside to open it but I figure at least ones an exit. Other than that it's just these." Answered Naruto again, he tapped his bat on a large chest with an electronic lock reading zero-zero-eight on it, cluttered around the chest were small melee weapons, a crowbar, a pair of pokers, a shovel and another bat.

"There was a window back there, we could get through it." I suggested not liking the idea of following this twisted horror movie maze any further than I had to. The idea was shot down as I was led into one of the others original rooms, the wooden boards had been stripped away to reveal solid red bricks instead.

"That counter was at nine before you came out, I think it'll open once twelve of those doors do." Sakura spoke up prompting her companions to verify it.

"You think there are answers in there?" asked the blonde, Ino, speaking for the first time, she still hung near the other blondes shoulder and seemed suspicious of my presence.

"Could be." Mumbled the blonde none committedly.

"Should we make some noise then, wake the others up?" asked Ino and I feared for a second she'd begin screaming then and there. I still felt that need for absolute silence and from the expressions that the others wore I knew they felt it too.

"We should keep quiet for the moment, I don't want to do anything rash until we know more." Sakura spoke first shushing and easing the more distressed woman. As they moved to sit on the chest Naruto shot me a look and the first although severely subdued smile I'd seen from him seen our meeting.

"So what's your story then?" he asked leaning on his bat almost idly but his eyes still jumped to every little noise.

"What do you mean?" I asked picking up the second bat and checking its weight carefully. I felt a little strange though, what was I going to do with this, fend off some unknown assailant I guessed.

"Thirty two, unmarried, working as the Mayors aide. Your turn." He offer his example a noticeable tinge of pride in his voice at his occupation, that explained the snappy dressing at least.

"Nineteen, single, studying philosophy." I returned in similar fashion, there was a sudden click and one of the doors behind swung open. An unhealthy man with a greasy face a pot belly and a ponytail stepped out looking as bewildered and confused as I'm sure I had. We learned that he was Shikamaru Naru, a twenty six year old games programmer who's dress taste was vaguely akin to a homeless mans.

The next to arrive was a hefty brunette man easily clearing six foot and likely around two hundred and forty or fifty pounds neatly crammed in a robe and formal pyjamas. He was Choji, thirty seven, married and profiteer of his own barbeque restaurant. A second man followed him in close order, Kankuro the twenty two year old tattooist that looked like the bad kid pulled from some eighties after school special, the stone washed denim jacket and leather pants helped.

A woman wearing nothing but an oversized football jersey stepped out next, her long brown hair was bunched up in twin buns and her large eyes matched them. She was Teagan 'Tenten' Williams, twenty eight and she worked in the theatre coordinating stunts and costumes and prompts and…well she just trailed off when she was listing her duties.

A grey haired man came next, tall and with an air of authority about him. He was Kakashi Hatake, forty eight years of age divorced schoolteacher and spoke to everyone with a slightly patronising teasing tone, it was unsettling how relaxed he seemed in the situation and I wondered if he'd always been just a school teacher. He wore drawstring pants and an old shirt I guessed was his sleeping wear, most seemed to have been taken in their sleep.

Next came Kurenai, thirty four, unemployed and dressed in sweat soaked cotton pants and a tank top with blurry wine toned eyes and messy ebony hair. She appeared to be suffering from a hangover and just about answered the questions we put to her.

The woman that followed her caught my attention with her attire, a pale lavender dress hugged her figure and went well with her pale blue eyes and curled black locks. She was Hinata Hyuuga, twenty six year old children's book author confused as all hell why she was no longer at her cousins wedding.

Time seemed to tick by though as we waited for the last door to open the counter on the chest had set itself on one and we were all eager for the imagined answers held within, though Kankuro had speculated the it was instead a bomb. The suggestion hadn't went over particularly well. Most of the guys had grabbed the other available weapons, though despite the opportunity Shikamaru had opted not to take one instead leaving Kankuro and Choji with a poker each, Kakashi the shovel and Tenten the crowbar.

It was the armed woman who approached me first as we awaited the final doors opening, she plopped down next to me less than lady like and prodded my shoulder with her crowbar.

"What do you make of it, and the others?" she asked without much of a song and dance. I managed to avoid eying her bare legs and raised an eyebrow at her in curiosity.

"You first." I deadpanned earning a smirk from her.

"We're caught up in some sick joke, I'm sure there's cameras hidden somewhere. They've given us weapons and since they've already went as far as kidnapping I doubt they're afraid of us dying, actually that's probably their hope." She explained her own thoughts in a low whisper tightening her grip on the crowbar, quite clever for a stunt woman come prop designer.

"As for the people, obviously I think you've got a level enough head, or enough that I'd prefer you at my back. The old geezer's probably alright though he's a bit too calm all the same. Tattoo boy and lady Vodka I wouldn't trust with my garbage. Fatty would make too slow a companion. The blondes are both nervous wrecks, though her more so. Miss doctor's well enough. The brides maid is either an airhead or shell shocked. And Tech boy gives me the cowardly impression." She spoke in her low whisper keeping her eyes on my own I supposed to avoid seeming like she was talking about the others.

"Quite a mouthful." I commented impressed at how much thought she'd invested in her surroundings and a little relieved the crafty woman wanted me for a companion.

"Your turn." She hummed her chocolate eyes flashing with interest.

"They've only given half enough weapons for all of us, either there's more in the chest of they're trying to play us against each other. I considered that one of us mightn't be as ignorant as they pretend to be but there's no way to tell." I summed up some of my own thoughts and from the glint in her eyes I suspected she'd thought the same but left them out as a test.

"Unless you're a turncoat you've got my respect, Kakashi too. I wouldn't trust Kankuro or Shikamaru as one seemed too eager to have a weapon and the other not eager enough. Kurenai and Hinata might be worth more if they come to their senses but for the moment they're dead weight. Naruto seems fine if he's not on his own, Choji if it's nothing fast or tight and Ino if you don't need her to do anything. Sakura's got a strong personality and a good enough mind." I gave her my own run down of the group so far, as it were Tenten probably was my preferred support with Kakashi and Sakura trailing behind. Of course only time would tell how accurate these guesses were.

"Seems we're on the same page then, a partnership seems wise." She spoke low, I nodded my head in silent agreement. As ridiculous as the situation was I didn't give it much thought, too many of this larger group gave me a bad feeling. Ino and her shaky nerves, Shikamaru and his apathy, Kankuro's zeal, Kakashi's calmness. I could see things going to hell easily and this paranoid brunette figured the same.

She drifted away after that, investigating each of the darkened rooms with her own flashlight. Looking for something to cover her legs she claimed when the others cast their suspicions. Sakura was the next to drift over to me as I watched the others interact tensely, Choji conversed quietly with Kakashi, Naruto still seemed to be consoling Ino and Shikamaru broke words with Kankuro.

"You holding up okay?" she asked resting a hand on my shoulder, genuine concern shun in her eyes and I found myself wondering at her specialty, paediatric probably, she seemed the type.

"Fine, and you?" I returned politely, no doubt she had some motive in this approach though I doubted it would be anything like Tentens.

"Fine, considering." She responded trailing off, the hand slid from my shoulder a little dejectedly and for a moment I managed to see through her forced optimism to her underlying fear.

"Seems like people are already forming clichés, strange thing to do at a time like this." She muttered chewing on her dry lip in a trait I found strangely cute for a woman likely more than a few years my senior.

"Human instinct…I mean isn't that why you're over here?" I pushed, her eyes widened a touch at the accusation but that just confirmed my guess was an accurate one.

"I guess I am but not really for myself. If we all just pick teams and run off into whatever demented traps are outside that door…well you can guess how it'll go." She commented her eyes finding the still shocked Hinata Hyuuga, naturally if everyone decided survival of the fittest was the way to go that quiet confused girl would be left on her own.

"You're not wrong." I admitted, the group would probably remain together for a while at the very least but without a clear leadership or trust it wouldn't take much to scatter us.

"She's under some influence, we were all probably drugged but they seem to have been too generous with her dosage." Then that made her something of a wide card I thought, who knew what hidden abilities she might possess. On the other hand she could just be dead weight that would remain as much.

"Why ask me?" I voiced another thought coming quick enough. I was the youngest here, it was possible Sakura thought I needed protection too.

"I think Hatake's too pleased to be here, Choji's desperate to return to his family, Naruto's already got a weight to carry and I can guess quick enough what those other two might be looking for in trade for protection." There was something to what she said. From some of the interaction I suspected Kurenai had made the approach though I wasn't sure, at any rate now that they knew what they could get for their protection they'd probably demand the same from Sakura or Hinata.

"What if I made a similar demand?" I tested, she seemed doubtful raising an eyebrow at me.

"Are you?" she challenged back. I wondered what gave her such confidence, had my failure to gape at Tentens legs given me away as too noble to demand sex for help.

"No but I'm surprised you're not at all pessimistic." I returned, it should have impressed me and yet instead I found myself growing more suspicious of the woman, that thing about something seeming too good.

"Just a little logic, I don't think you're the type to have trouble with girls." She reasoned with a wink before she returned to her self-appointed charge. The grey haired Kakashi was quick to approach me next but only fired a single question my way.

"Does the name Obito mean anything to you?" his voice came gruffer and thicker than it had before and I blinked in confusion for a moment before shaking my head in the negative. He didn't seem to have any follow up but fixed my a significant stare before he returned to the other side of the room.

Fifteen minutes later the final click came and the last oaken door swung open, a spiky haired brunette figure stumbled from the room even more disorientated than Hinata had been, Sakura was the first to move to his aid.

She didn't scream as the man shifted his weight and lunged forward, his shoulder crashed into her chest and took them both to the grimy concrete with a dull smack. A hand raised to strike the gasping woman and probably would have connected if not for Tenten's timely intervention, she'd emerged from a search of the room that used to be Kakashi's in time to see the attack. She crossed the distance smoothly and hammered her shin into the man's side sending him tumbling unmoving toward Naruto and Ino.

I rushed to the spluttering doctors side, Tenten was already checking her over. She seemed alright if not sore as she settled more comfortably onto her side.

"He's got no pulse." Announced Naruto shooting Tenten a look that spoke of horror and amazement in equal measure. Her own expression was hard to judge as a multitude of different emotions flittered through her brown eyes, shock, horror, disbelief, a sliver of regret and then something like acceptance. If she'd killed him it had been an accident and she done it to defend someone else. Though I did question the ease with which she came to that conclusion, would I make such an easy transition.

"He's still moving though." Breathed Ino moving slightly closer to morbidly watch as the bodies hand twitched from some dying spasm, another tremble passed through a leg and I wondered at the cause.

"Get back!" The hissed warning came seconds too late as the twitching hand lashed out catching Ino's ankle and tripping her as she jumped back. Somehow the lifeless body continued to move climbing onto the blondes stocking clad legs as she tried to kick it off. There came a blood curdling scream from the woman moments before Naruto and the charging Kakashi wrestled the dead man off with a flash of crimson. The eldest man's shovel came down in a brutal arc splitting the dead man's head open with a grotesque splash.

Naruto was quick to move on his companion as she whimpered and clutched her right calf, through the gaps in her fingers blood leaked freely pooling on the floor. Most of the others hovered near Kakashi as he prodded the remains with his weapon checking that the man was truly dead this time. Hinata was the only one who seemed put off by the sight moving instead towards Sakura, Tenten and myself.

"You alright doc? I think blondie might need your help." Tenten spoke to the pink haired woman as she helped her into a sitting position.

"I doubt it, I'm a chiropractor." She muttered back making her earlier bartering suddenly much clearer. A doctor was something worth protecting in a survival scenario, a chiropractor however...

"The chest's open." Announced Shikamaru the only one to have not drifted from his original position throughout the entire encounter. He was right, the chest locked had disengaged and we now had free access to the chest contents. About a dozen envelopes and an equal number of rucksacks were the only occupants, we were all cagey as we took a bag each and an envelope. There was still one spare of each. The seal on each was of a small red 'D' bordered by a strange green snake or worm.

"Welcome dear most fortunate contestants, we are pleased to announce you have been volunteered for our most prestigious competition. Please find enclosed a goodie bag to help you avoid the angry folk like your last friend and to enjoy your stay on the island." Read Naruto perhaps because Ino was unlikely to read her own at the moment. It said the same on my own copy and I assumed all the others too.

"Angry folk like your friend." I heard Sakura whisper to me, both of our gazes drifted to the dismembered body still spilling blood onto the floor.

"Shit." Tenten swore lightly mirroring my own internal feelings, that explained the weapons to a degree. So that was it, if the letter was to be believed we were on an island trapped with an unspecified amount of lunatics.

"That asshole was more than angry, he was fucking dead!" snarled Kankuro waving his weapon angrily at the corpse. None of us offered an answer. I don't think any of us could we were all still pale and shaky, whatever that man was he'd destroyed our remaining nerves. There was a man dead now, this wasn't some elaborate joke. We could die, no in all likelihood we would die.

"What does it mean volunteered?" the Hyuuga mumbled almost to herself.

"It means we aren't here accidently, someone offered us up." Kakashi answered scrunching up his note and tossing it aside before he turned his attention to his bag instead, I decided to follow the example. I was careful not to simply pull everything out, the bags might not be standard issue and I did want anyone deciding they wanted what was in mine.

At the top of the pile was a cell phone, royal blue and expensive looking, beneath it was a coil of rope, a hunting knife, a lighter and a bottle of water. Not really a lot. I flipped open the phone, unsurprisingly most of the functions seemed to be missing. I worked my way into a contacts menu finding it surprisingly somewhat filled out, my own information and that of the other ten here was entered along with a photograph of each. There was also a twelfth, Kiba, though over his picture read first the word 'infected' and beneath it 'deceased'. There were thirty six still blank spaces.

"There may be thirty six other survivors on this island then." Offered Naruto reaching the same conclusion as most of us, the D on the envelop must have stood for a group title, that left A B and C somewhere in the game too.

"Thirty three likely less." Edited Shikamaru drawing a quick 'what' from the jumpy blonde.

"Eleven survivors and one like him." Answered the programmer throwing a pointed look towards the body.

"Do we find the rest of them then, strength in numbers?" spoke up Naruto again stepping up for position of team leader, Shikamaru was quick to speak again surprisingly. I guessed it was only physically he was lazy.

"This is a game, how do all games begin?" asked the ponytailed man, nobody seemed to eager to speak up.

"A tutorial." I ventured guessing where the older man was going with his reasoning.

"Right and this is a survival game. That's hiding cowering and crawling about through the dark, not fighting. There'll be hundreds of those things roaming out there. Troublesome." Answered the man raking a hand through his hair in understated exasperation.

"Then the quieter the better, smaller faster groups." Spoke up Kankuro, Sakura threw him a dirty look as Kurenai and Shikamaru drew close to him. They didn't appear to want to discuss any more on the topic as they made their way to the final door.

Dull morning light poured through the door as the trio disappeared through it followed shortly by Kakashi and Choji whom spared little more than a glance toward us on their way out. Ino seemed suddenly frightened and with good reason I thought.

"You're not going to leave me are you?" her frightened blue eyes darted from one person to another focusing on Naruto more than any of the rest of us.

"Of course not." Comforted the blonde man helping her to her feet, his own eyes flashed as he glanced toward us.

"We'll need to find something for her to use as support." I suggested by way of answer, Tenten seemed as conflicted by the plan as I was but Sakura turned a grateful gaze on me that soothed some of the anxiety. Hinata still seemed to be in a world of her own. A third of our too large group was dead weight, our doctor was not actually a doctor, Naruto seemed a little easily swayed and I still didn't trust Tenten unconditionally.

Together we made our way into the morning light.

* * *

New story, trying something a little different this time. Hope you guys are interested in it. Haven't really decided on the pairings yet, though I've got some leanings.

R&R


	2. First day out

Title; Lucky

Disclaimer; Nope I don't own any of the Naruto characters.

Chapter 2-

* * *

"This should do." Tenten announced pulling a long sturdy looking branch from the nearby forestry, Ino seemed reluctant to take the prop but finally accepted it after some gentle coaxing from Naruto.

"Where to?" Sakura spoke up glancing around with her hands planted on her hips. There was only a single path leading away from the building we'd been occupying and judging from the boot prints beaten into the damp soil the others had already taken it, heading into the canopy would have probably been a bad idea even if Ino could have managed it but…

"Does anyone hear water?" I voiced raising a hand in a loose gesture to call for silence among the whispering group. Sure enough the gentle lapping of waves could be heard once we quieted down, I shared a look with Tenten.

"We'll scout the way." I wasn't sure if she was making a suggestion or stating an order but I guessed that was a positive, with all the tension in the air everyone had a brittle feel to them. Unsurprisingly Ino was the first the voice her suspicions with a subdued wail accusing us of abandoning her.

"They have to come back up this way to get to the path again." Explained the eldest of us shushing her and soothing her fears. That wasn't entirely true, in fact except for our lack of supplies it made a fair amount of sense for us to travel along the beach in search of a boat or dock instead of wandering deeper into the unknown and likely more infested island centre. The more subtle suspicion in Naruto and Sakura's bright eyes told me they had reasoned as much too.

"Meanwhile think any of you are up for scaling the building, get a lay of the land?" asked the brunette twirling her crowbar almost absentmindedly, there was a certain familiarity there with the impromptu weapon.

"I'll try it." Spoke up Sakura glancing at the red brick giant.

"No, better I try it." Sighed the Uzumaki aid popping his shoulder and gazing at the building I thought with some relief, I guessed a physical barrier to overcome was better than the unknown for him.

"Yeah and I'll defend the two girls." Commented the hundred and ten pound chiropractor raising an eyebrow distinctly mockingly at the sheepish blonde. He was probably the strongest among us, I think I might have had an inch or two in height on him but he definitely had more bulk.

"Well you two work that out." Muttered my brunette partner drily before we set off through the underbrush, fortunately it didn't take more than a minute to reach the noise source. We stepped onto a steep but not particularly high cliff overlooking a small beach.

"Someone went this way." I mentioned as Tenten glanced over the edge, somebody's length of rope was looped around one of the thicker tree trunks and hung over the edge.

"I can't see them though, guess they're sticking close to the cliff wall." Commented the girl lowering herself onto her stomach in an attempt to get a better view. I heard a bang in the distance and there came a sudden creak from the woods. I whirled lifting the bat and scanning the greenery for movement.

"Get up!" I hissed to my companion just as a figure brushed through the canopy into view, I only managed to stop my swing at the last second as I recognised the confused Hyuuga woman blinking at me with a more obvious intelligence than she'd displayed before. Something passed between us in that second as hyperawareness alerted me to several things all at once, her laboured breathing, her wide panicked eyes and the silent scream caught in her throat.

I wrapped an arm around her pulling her awkwardly around my body and lashed out low and awkwardly one-handed with the bat, the strike connected with the second dark figures knees smashing one into the other and sending it sprawling into a bloody heap next to Tenten.

The older woman didn't hesitate though and rolled to safety as it hit the ground near her it's head bouncing against the stones with a sickening squelch. It had been long damaged before that though, it's face in particular was a mess. The jaw seemed dislocated and the flesh had been torn open, an eye too I noticed disgustedly had been torn out.

Each of us jumped back as it moved, first a wiggle and a low moan before it began to crawl and reach for us with bloodied hands. I felt the newly conscious woman's arms tighten around my arm as she drew further behind me. I shared a look with Tenten as she gripped her crowbar more tensely now.

"The head, that last one Kakashi killed." I muttered to myself recalling the older man's brutal execution, and wondering not for the first time just how much he'd known. I raised the bat a little hesitantly but Tenten beat me to the punch driving the crowbar into the monstrosities skull.

"What the hell is that fucking thing?" questioned the Hyuuga sounding somewhat more husky now she'd returned to her senses, the swearing also seemed strange.

"A mutant, a bioweapon maybe, I don't bloody know." Hissed Tenten planting a foot on the things back and pulling the crowbar free, there was a haunted edge to her gaze as it shifted over my way.

"What happened?" she asked throwing the question toward the women at my back. Stuttering and uncomfortable as she gained her bearings Hinata began to explain.

* * *

I cringed as my elbow pressed into the murky puddle, lovely. I managed to pull myself higher with a grunt and glared at the damp ugly brown stain now decorating my jacket.

I shivered at the wind chill this high and clambered to my feet intent on getting a lay of the land as quickly as possible and then making my way back down. For reference I decided to assume the path led north for the moment. It also seemed to be the only direction of real interest, to the east, south and west were little more than light forestry and then ocean.

The north however held more promise, the path seemed to continue on to some buildings. Or at least I thought so, I could just about glimpse the grey of some concrete peeking out above the tree tops. I glanced down towards the path looking to see if there was any easier way down than the drain pipe I'd crawled up.

Instead it was my companions that drew my attention, Naruto had raised his bat high and seemed on edge backing Hinata and Ino towards the building and out of my sight. I couldn't hear anything over the whistling wind but the source of his worries became apparent. A hefty figure lurched from the canopy moving with the same unnatural gait as the other islander had, rubbery and staccato paced as it moved with laboured effort.

Naruto moved forward impressing me with the quickness of his reaction, the bats edge exploded in a messy splay of blood against the creatures head sending it crashing onto its side, more blows rained down on the body as it continued trying to rise, it finally stilled as the bat came down once more on its head caving it in.

Tunnel vision had seemed to take over the blonde though as he failed to notice the second figure emerge from the woods behind him. Fortunately for him though it didn't approach his blind side, instead it staggered in a half run towards the easier prey, Hinata and Ino. I heard a dull slam of the door and thought them safe until Hinata bounded back into view fleeing the bleeding monstrosity. Ino had shut her out.

I quelled the growing fear and the false sense of safety I felt high up here and scurried back over to the drain pipe, even glancing around the open ground beneath I felt vulnerable and craved the assurance of a weapon in my hand.

* * *

Both of the girls were pale and shaky as we passed through the treeline back into the buildings clearing. I doubted I was any better, I could feel my sweat slick hair sticking to my forehead and had to shift my grip on the bat periodically to rub my hands dry. Sakura met us at the side of the building dropping the last few feet from her climb down.

"You're alright? What happened to it?" she questioned rapid fire her green eyes wide as she grabbed the confused Hinata's shoulders and gave her a quick look over for injuries.

"I got it." Came Tenten's less than shaky reply as she brushed past the others taunt and tense like a bow string. Sakura released a soft 'oh' that seemed to spark something in the brunettes eyes but she didn't comment. I couldn't blame her for the prickly attitude, that thing had looked human enough and I didn't doubt something in her was rebelling at what had happened.

"Right well, there's some buildings further up that path. I can't see any of those things, or out in the open at least." She spoke not really directing her words at any one of us. Tenten had detached a little from us scanning the foliage around us with a critical eye.

"Seems like our best bet, there might be something we can us there. Supplies, information maybe even a damned phone." I offered my voice sounding unsure even to my own ears, the phone was probably too much to hope for but if this really was some strange game some sort of supply drop seemed likely. And it seemed just as likely it would be guarded.

"Some different cloths would be nice." Commented the dazed Hyuuga, the glassiness had left her eyes and a more snarky edge coated her words, I guess that dress had been pretty awkward to flee in.

"It would be nice not to keep flashing people." Chimed in Tenten coarsely with a dark chuckle, what's that old saying about laughing when you want to cry. We rounded the corner to find Naruto speaking to the now shut door of the building. I raised an eyebrow in question at the behaviour, I considered using words but the raised eyebrow seemed rather fitting on its own.

"Ino's locked herself inside." He muttered to himself, it could have been a sheepish tone if not for the hard throb to his voice. A recently dead corpse cluttered the earth floor feet away, the source of the unhappy situation undoubtedly.

"Leave her there, she seemed pretty damn eager to get in." Growled the Hyuuga lowly, fortunately Naruto seemed out of ear shot or had resolved to ignore her.

"Naruto, did you know Ino before waking up here?" I asked, it had been playing on my mind for a while now watching the two interact. If they were linked previously it could be a clue, a theme in how we'd been selected and a hint as to who had done the selecting. If two of us had been linked then maybe a more subtle link existed between all eleven of us.

"We attended the same college, dated briefly in my final year." Answered the Uzumaki offhandedly before he returned to his probing and negotiating with the hysterical woman to no real effect.

"We've made too much noise here, we need to move." Called Tenten barely above a whisper, it was a good point I supposed. Even just the low noises of our moving about had attracted these two, the rumbles of their deaths and Ino's theatrics would undoubtedly draw many more. Hinata agreed instantly and moved forward with the brunette.

"Leave her for the moment, we can return later." Sakura tried to sway the reluctant blonde, he gave another final attempt to sway the woman but it was futile.

We formed into a column with Tenten striking forward to take point and the lingering Naruto trailing behind with a sympathetic Sakura as company. The well-dressed Hyuuga hovered in the middle by my side, it wasn't hard to see that she preferred myself and Tenten for company.

"So you're an Uchiha right?" spoke up the pale eyed woman. I couldn't help notice the way she clutched her hands in front of her, twiddling her digits in a manner I found endearing despite its childishness.

"Yeah." I could guess where she was going, my family had been well known in my youth. My father had been CEO of a successful software company and my mother had been a somewhat known actress featuring in a couple of low budget TV series and the occasional B movie. Of course that had been a while ago, a car crash and a brother with a nasty vice ago.

"Mikoto Uchiha's son?" she pressed again and I offered a nod wondering where she was going with this.

"We've met before. My father was a fan and he had your family around for a meal, I think you might have been three or four about the same age as my sister." She explained flashing a bright grin that displayed her dimples rather nicely. Another connection too, I noted, though a very distant one.

"I don't really recall, sorry." I admitted. I didn't remember much of anything before the crash really just little flashes, my mother singing, my father teaching me chess, a house that wasn't barren and cold.

"That's alright, it was a pretty boring dinner. Well except for seeing my father stutter, that was kind of nice." I didn't try speaking anymore and neither did she, the forest path was beginning to narrow now and I wanted my hearing focused on my surroundings, she likely felt the same.

Tenten came to a sudden stop just as the buildings were coming into view. Naruto was the first to try questioning the woman and was swiftly silenced by a sharp kick to the shin as Tenten tapped her ears a distinct look crossing her features. The sound was easy to make out once we concentrated a little, life, movement, footsteps and inhuman low groans.

I was suddenly thankful for the lack of Ino's presence as we crept around the cover, we managed a clean line of sight of the building. It was a large building, three stories and surrounded by eight foot high fencing. A dozen maybe two dozen of the creatures huddled around the fencing interspersed in groups of three and four.

It was Sakura who came up with a plan first, she traced a square into the dirt at our feet to represent the fencing and marked three of the sides, one with a single line the other two with two. We'd have to split up I guessed, those things were quicker than they seemed with their staccato paced lurching, we couldn't all climb at the same point. We all nodded in agreement with the plan, there didn't seem much else that could be added given the need for silence.

The groups were decided quick enough as Tenten pulled Sakura toward the left flank and Hinata followed me as I moved to take the right leaving Naruto on his own to tackle the front.

Only two packs of the things bordered the right flank, a group of four and a group of three hung at opposite ends of the fence. Thirty metres they'd have to cover to reach us at the best spot, not a lot of breathing room. I eyed the Hyuuga and her regal attire.

"…cut your dress." I barely stopped myself from speaking aloud pulling the woman closer instead to whisper to her. I pulled the knife from my pack offering her the handle but she declined in favour of her own, I glanced away as she cut into the expensive material and busied myself attaching the blade to my jeans for better use.

I'd expected her to just cut a slit into it but when I looked back to her most of the dress had been hacked away into an impromptu mini dress revealing more than I was expecting of her shapely legs. I hadn't realised I'd been staring until she tapped my shoulder, fortunately a look of amusement shadowed her features not anger.

We shared a look and a nod before we sprung from our cover. My vision tunnelled as we crossed the distance in seconds and I threw the bat over the fence and then all but threw myself at the fence pulling myself up by whatever leverage I could find. By the time I reached the top straddling the rusted iron bar I realised Hinata hadn't managed the climb as easily, the creatures were ten metres and closing now as I swung an arm down to her.

She gripped my arm desperately and used it to scale high enough just in time to avoid her assailants, too eager though I pulled hard as she threw herself higher. We both tumbled backward as she collided with my chest, I curled and hit the dirt with enough force to drive the air from my lungs and then some.

"Shit!" I heard my companion swear under her breath as a long shaky breath forced its way out of me, my rib cage felt almost displaced and my muscles ached fiercely but I could still move. I rolled onto my stomach and glanced at the woman clutching her wrist and biting her lip.

"It broken?" I managed making it to my knees and beginning my search for the bat I'd thrown ahead of us.

"No, but it's still fucked for the moment." She answered with a light whimper, I found the bat and crawled over to the woman, her wrist was swollen and I thought dislocated. I managed to get to my feet relieved to find that pain aside I could move just fine.

"Let's find the others." I suggested, Sakura was a chiropractor she might be able to do something for Hinata's wrist, chiropractors did stuff with bones right?

"I think we should get inside, seeing us is agitating them." Hinata voiced instead, I turned an eye on the crowd just outside the fence. She was right, where they had been docile and complacent before they were now raging and tearing at the fence. They'd make it through too if there were just a few more of them.

"Inside it is." I agreed.

* * *

The young Uchiha led the way as we stepped inside the marginally warmer building, I shut the doors dead bolt and braced it awkwardly with a bench as he scouted the hallway we had stepped into. Lockers lined the debris filled corridor but I spied something exceptionally interesting on one of the walls.

"I think we're in a school." Muttered the Uchiha as I drew the knife from my pack. He cringed as I struck the safety glass and knocked away the remaining shards, the effort was rewarded through as I pulled my new fire axe free testing its weight awkwardly in my uninjured offhand. The younger man had a bemused expression on his handsome face as I turned back at him.

"You really a children's author?" he asked. I wondered how he actually knew that and then wrote it off, I'd probably said so while I was still hazy. I couldn't remember much more than the flashes of different faces, then light and then that thing rushing me and that blonde bitch slamming the door she'd crawled into. And then migraine, there was lots of that.

"Sometimes yeah." I threw back wondering what the boy did himself. He could be an athlete I supposed, with his lean muscled build. But no, there was something keen in his eyes that told me he liked to think, to question and examine. I liked that.

"What do you make of this situation?" he asked keeping just slightly ahead of me in his pace. Well what did I make of it, it had been a damn bizarre thing to awaken to and I'd mostly been going on instinct and adrenaline just accepting whatever happened putting aside the insaneness of it all for a later date.

"I'd be inclined to think ransom if it were only the two of us, and we weren't being hunted by those things." I started badly, it probably wouldn't work to think this through rationally. Whomever had dumped us here with these things probably wasn't too keen on things like logic.

"Tenten seems to think there are camera's about, actually most of us felt this had the airs of some sick game to it. Check you cell." Returned the Uchiha prompting me to search my bag and withdraw the sleek device in question, it hadn't much more than a contacts list in it.

"Nine of those are like you and I, we started in the same building, the other man was in the building too but he was one of those things. It's a contestant list we think." Explained the dark man, I could vaguely recall it. A savage looking man and a struggle, I discovered him quickly enough as Kiba- infected and diseased.

"It's monitoring us too." I added drawing the young man's attention, he was quick to draw his own model and glance over the names. Both of ours were interlocked by green treads as were Tenten and Sakura and three other people I couldn't really recall, Shikamaru, Kankuro and Kurenai.

"Guess there must be camera's then." He mumbled before noticing something else. I didn't need more than one guess to figure out what either. Over the blonde woman, Ino's, picture in bold red letters were the words 'infected'.

"Does that mean…" I began, I'd seen the bandage and I could recall someone being hurt by that man, Kiba.

"I think so." Infection, it wasn't a subtle or obscure hint. That one had a disease, just the same as whatever sick strain the things out here had.

"Come on, I hear someone up ahead." Prompted the Uchiha shifting his grip sorely on the bat. I wondered just how much strength he had left after that fall, and how much less still he'd have once the adrenaline wore off.

* * *

"You alright." Asked the brunette offering me a hand up. I took it relieved when I got to my feet to find no more serious an injury than a mild ache in my lower back, though combined with the dull ache still throbbing in my chest I was starting to feel distinctly thrashed. I shivered slightly rubbing my bare arms. I had lost my coat getting over the fence, it was still snagged actually where it had caught during the climb.

"You're pretty tough for such a fragile looking chick." Offered the other woman leading the way into the building, I could see more of those things flocking to the fence clawing at the iron to get at my coat and I supposed us after they realised that wasn't a person.

"You seem pretty tough yourself." I muttered back as we found the nearest entrance. The brunette wasted no time smashing the glass panel and undoing the lock. Tough she certainly was but detached too, something cold had entered her chocolate eyes since I'd first seen her. Tenten offered a dry bitter laugh.

"It's going to take more than toughness to get through this you know, smashing someone's head open's not something a well-adjusted person can do." Commented the brunette as we stepped inside what turned out to be a school, we shifted a nearby cabinet to block the door. So that's what was on her mind, it had been her who killed the creature chasing Hinata earlier.

"Grim but you're not wrong." I agreed, would each of us be able to exercise the callous cruelty needed when the time came. I wouldn't put it past the kid Sasuke, he didn't seem like a bad person but he'd accepted all this too easily, too detached the same way Tenten was. Naruto would too if push came to shove I'd seen that much, but he didn't have it in him to leave a friend. Hinata, I doubted she'd have it in her.

At any rate even if we survived something would be lost from the acts needed, it wasn't a pleasant thought.

A crash broke me from my musings.

* * *

Chapter 2 completed my wonderful readers, hope you're enjoying. As always reviews are mandatory and should be offered up to appease my inflated ego :D.

Honestly I am genuinely curious about any opinions or questions you might have regarding this fic, but if there's none then just try to enjoy.

R&R


	3. I saw a Pikachu

Title; Lucky

Disclaimer; Nope I don't own any of the Naruto characters.

Artemis- Yep, hence why she now reads infected. I made Hinata older to purposefully avoid the shyness, she'll still revert to her old nervous self at times but most of that will have mellowed. Yes Sasuke is the youngest, I thought it would balance them best if the serious prone Sasuke was youthful and the typically reckless Naruto was aged.

Chapter 3-

* * *

The noise just so happened to be a snack food vending machine still operating and given the demented tone it called it's slogans out in it was slightly damaged.

"That's good." Breathed my companion moving forward to tap the glass lightly with her fire axe, it seemed pretty solid.

"Yeah, I was really craving a snickers." I wasn't, food was certainly on my mind but the impulse was lacking. My stomach felt too tight, too knotted in confusion and anxiety to eat. Hinata offered me a glance that was unreadable, maybe she was impressed at my ability to joke at a time like this but all the more likely she was writing me off as a madman or an idiot. Maybe both.

"It's something, and there's obviously working power here." She returned offering me the axe, I guessed due to her strained wrist. Ignoring the throbbing sensation in my back we first unplugged the machine, for both the quiet and to avoid a leech on a possibly fragile energy source, and then with some barely repressed glee I smashed the front panel of the machine open.

We were careful of what to take given the limited room in our bags, the health and protein bars were obvious choices while we regrettably left all the delicious varieties of potato chips behind. Hinata was quick to more or less devour two of the remaining bars before blushing and sheepishly explaining she'd been on a diet for the wedding. I chuckled and wiped a smudge of chocolate from her cheek drawing a deeper blush. In the back of my mind though I was clearing one worry off my list, she'd be dazed when we awoke because she'd been under-eating making her more vulnerable not any weakness.

"Well if there are any of those things around here that crash should have drawn them." I offered, of course it should also have alerted the others assuming they got in. I glanced down the way we hadn't come noticing some rubble. I gestured to the Hyuuga to follow and raised my bat cautiously.

The rubble had formerly been the lower portion of a staircase, there wasn't anything else in the room except two other exits but I was still happy with the discovery. I could still imagine those things outside working themselves into a frenzy and tearing that gate away, if we were going to rest here then I'd be more comfortable on a cut off second floor.

It was maybe a ten foot climb but I managed it easily enough with the aid of a large block of rubble. Hinata wasn't nearly so agile but we managed all the same, since the gap was too much we used the axe to bridge the distance between us.

"You always gonna try picking me up then?" asked the brunette returning my earlier strange humour with a smile. That was good, we were both on the same page at least of going mad from stress.

"Keep wearing that dress and I will." She blushed and climbed to her feet glancing about, I followed. Things up here seemed to be in better condition than downstairs and I wondered if we'd find anything really useful, maybe there'd be some cots hidden away in the teachers staff room, meds in a nurse's office, a bottle of Jack and a revolver in the principles desk?

"Someone should wait here for the others and someone needs to check for others ways onto this floor." Hinata was the first to speak, I agreed with the assessment but was about to argue. With her injured wrist either task would be suicidal if the second floor was infested. Hell either one would be suicidal for me too, one of those things sure, two maybe three if I'm feeling lucky but this bat wasn't a wonder weapon and I wasn't an action hero.

A noise from below quieted any further discussion.

* * *

Teagan took point stepping into the room with her naturally brazen swagger weapon held loosely to one side, she seemed to have no difficulty with the uneven footing despite being barefoot. She was quick to spot something on the left side of the room that caused her noticeable relief but I saw something else, a pale slack face streaked with rivets of scarlet and dead dolls eyes that honed in on the unawares brunette.

Instinct drove me forward and I crashed into the other woman yanking us both roughly out of the way of the creatures lunge. We hit the rubble roughly and I heard the brunette give a low hiss but ignored it turning my eyes on our assailant instead. I quickly guessed what had caused Teagan her earlier relief as the dark youth, Sasuke, descended from the second floor and stuck the creatures flank as it staggered towards us ready for another lunge.

His bat smacked against the creatures skull with a resounding crack taking it from its feet and a volley of further strikes finished it there but most after the first had been unnecessary. He was still shaking slightly as I got to my feet and approached him cautiously. I lay a gentle hand on his forearm finding it tight and corded with still flexing muscles and after a minute he calmed coming down off the adrenaline rush that had allowed him to dive into danger and crush such a human looking thing into mush.

Teagan had made it to her feet and muttered a curt thanks in my direction as she cupped her bleeding arm. She turned her large doe eyes on the Uchiha for a second undoubtedly passing some silent message to him, they had originally planned to work together after all.

"You mind parting with the other sleeve, I lose any of this and I'll have to start charging you for the show." She muttered drily, the Uchiha seemed ready to say something in return but abandoned it I guessed noticing how shaky Teagan really was. I spied the fourth member of our little entourage sitting on the stairs her bare legs dangling. Was there some sort of dress code? Should I be trading my functional pants in to show a bit more skin.

Sasuke took us to the source of the earlier crash and busied himself keeping guard as we scooped up as many foodstuffs as our bags could handle. I needed a boost when we returned to the stairs but Teagan surprised me making the climb herself and I noted with more ease than the taller Uchiha. After I diagnosed Hinata's wrist only to be sprained, if not a particularly bad sprain, and voiced my confusion of where her axe had come from we moved fully up the stairs.

"We'll do a sweep of this floor together, if it's secure school boy and I will head down to the first again and find Blondie." Explained Teagan, I guessed taking on the role of group leader. Objectively she made the most sense of the three of us with confirmed kills. Sasuke was too young for us to really place the burden on and Naruto was too soft, I still wasn't completely sure he hadn't just returned to Ino after we'd split up.

We found each of the other staircases quickly enough using the wall maps littered around the building, all of them were damaged similarly or even more so than the one we'd climbed. Our next destination would have been easier were the maps in English but we eventually discovered the staff room finding it was also conveniently the security room with a small office inside set up with monitors.

Between the four of us we wasted no time in turning up everything the room had to offer. A locked cabinet turned out a pot, hotplate, kettle and several cups of instant noodles I supposed would make as good a dinner as we could hope for, there was a fridge but everything in it had clearly been there for far too long. A smaller cabinet had revealed some canned goods, a box of flares and a sickening note congratulating us on finding a food drop.

Sasuke was quick to announce the happy discovery of a bathroom complete with shower in a small side room and Hinata discovered a first aid kit among one of the desks and the other three spent a moment properly taking care of their injuries as I examined the monitors. I swore under my breath.

"You guys!" I called them over to see my discovery, one of the monitors had been set to flick between different outside views and revealed a break in the gate I distinctly recognised as where Teagan and I had entered. It took some fiddling with the foreign controls but we also managed to get an eye on the first floor. The corridors were still empty with the exception of the one corpse we'd come across ourselves.

Any optimism was ruined though once the camera's revealed the gymnasium to us. Over a dozen of the creatures had gather together pawing at the raised bleachers, they were the hide away kind for small sports halls and had all been pulled completely out to form a raised platform. Atop the island stood a grainy but familiar figure.

* * *

"So how do we help him?" The question passed my lips sounding eerily close to a question of should we help at all. Which cruel as it might have been wouldn't have been a stupid question, hell I wasn't sure we could help the blonde man.

"A distraction." Spoke up Sasuke. I supposed that would be the best way to get him out of there, lure the majority of them away and hope Naruto could make it through whatever remained.

"We'd need one person as distraction, maybe another to aid Blondie and a third to help the distraction back up swiftly." Explained Tenten her eye's darting around our small group.

"I'll play the distraction." Added the brunette forcefully surprising me, unfair as it might have been I didn't think the woman was the selfless type. Rather I thought she was probably quite the calculating type.

"No, you're bare foot and the rubble's piled up down there." Spoke up the Uchiha in challenge. True enough her feet were scuffed up and if she decided to sprint through those halls fleeing those things she'd probably come back bloody if she did at all.

"And I can't hall your ass up the stairs, you can manage me." Countered the brunette. Another very valid point, whoever was fleeing needed a hasty exit and none of us were strong enough to hoist the man up those damage steps.

"So I'll do it then." Spoke up the pink haired woman from behind both of the others. She did have decent foot wear unlike Tenten and myself, and she probably weighed a fair amount less being both shorter and slighter than either of us.

"You sure?" I asked I could see the other two weren't going to ask it, they were too busy running the new plan though in their heads. Sasuke could hoist the tiny girl up easily and Tenten was good for support, she could fight and climb with Naruto.

"Yeah, I use to be on the track team in high school, well the soccer team…goal keeper actually." Her tone didn't exactly inspire massive confidence as she tied up her hair in a messy ponytail, she seemed jittery as she turned to the Uchiha.

"You're gonna pick me up then?" she attempted in the same poor attempt at humour I'd used earlier, I supposed it hadn't been all that original...or funny. But Sasuke gave a weak awkward laugh in return anyway. I felt somehow lazy and I guessed Tenten agreed as she rounded on me.

"That makes you mission control then Bright eyes. We've no way of communicating at a distance but you are single fire back up. A ghoul shows up blocking either of the stair cases or anything like that." Explained the strong woman before pointing out the positions to us with only slight alterations made out as Sakura and Sasuke gave their inputs.

Sasuke would be located on the highest staircase for Sakura, it seemed the best idea for keeping them from climbing up here. The girl herself would climb down a case the other side of the building and make her way across cutting through the gym at a run then making her way first through a relatively clear corridor so they could easily follow before cutting through the canteen's kitchen to tangle them up. Tenten would slink through the building ghosting the smaller woman and once Sakura caused the distraction she would take care of any stragglers and guide Naruto to the nearest of the climbable stairs.

At the very least the camera's seemed to suggest all of the ghouls as Tenten had named the creatures were gathered in the hall. There wasn't much of anything said in the way of good byes as the three left to set up. I saw each take a position the Uchiha a strange mixture of bored and tense as the others climbed back down into danger.

* * *

"This is your last chance to back out Pink." I offered the shorter woman as she somewhat distractedly stretched out for her death run. She gave a quiet half snarl at the nickname and I made a note to use it more often if all went well.

"I can handle it Legs." I had to admire her plucky spirit at least, the only comfort I had was the weight of the crowbar in my hand and that was precious little.

"Thanks for noticing, but you're not my type." I threw back unperturbed. Besides that had mostly been a phase in my teens, girls could be much too sensitive and Pinkie seemed that type. I would be much happier though once I found a pair of pants. I added to the to do list, first save Blondie then find a way to cover my knickers.

The miniature woman was impressively lithe as she started down the hall bouncing on the balls of her feet with the gait of a natural athlete. I was no slouch myself but had to move more carefully watching for glass or other sharp debris as she bounded ahead.

She was out of sight in a moment and in another there was the clap of heavy footed bodies chasing after something.

When I made it to the gymnasium a moment later I discovered how well the distraction had worked. Of the large group that had been there moments before only three remained, and Naruto blinking a little dumbly at the swinging door Sakura must have lead the ghouls through.

The nearest to me had been a gentleman I supposed had been handsome at some point with his sleek hairstyle, high cheek bones and sharp pinstriped suit. But that had been before whatever got him did, his eyes had turned a ghastly blue and thick yellow tears of pulse dripped from the corners of his eyes, the suit was bloodied where his stomach had been torn open once above the sternum and a second time near his left kidney. Blood covered his lips, evidence that he'd been a deliverer of death as much as he was a victim.

I snared and swung the crowbar striking his temple hard enough to open a thick gash spilling sickly blood over the gym floor and taking the former man from his feet. A second blow angled down through his eye socket finished the job as I breathed a shaky breath. Easier this time, less guilt, them or me that's the way it was.

Naruto had clambered down and put his bat to work caving in the skull of the short chubby ghoul nearest him, sickeningly the overhead strike had hammered the head and neck down deeper into the things torso.

I didn't bother with the third waif of a man going around the shuffling confused mess of half eaten flesh as it tried to clamber to us on shredded legs. I gripped the scruff of Blondies shirt collar and gave him an informative jerk away from his latest kill.

I couldn't hear the sounds of the Pink woman's fleeing and shushed the blonde as he voiced a desire to go help her, did he think we'd rushed in to help him without a plan? Once we had reached the collapsed stairs and ascended to the second floor I explained to the whiney man that Pinkie had an escape route that could in no way be aided by our pointless deaths.

* * *

Any concerns I had about fitness or how my exercise routine of carefully planned sitting on the couch in front of the TV most evenings with a couple of panicked sit-ups and jumping jacks thrown in once in a blue moon when I became overly self-conscious might not exactly help me escape death here all vanished the minute I barged into the gymnasium.

As those things gave shrieks and wet growls at the sight of a live meal my mind fell into blind terror stricken panic. I didn't bother with pacing myself and barely held enough piece of mind to adhere to the pre-set path. I shouldered my way through the corridor door sparing a reflexive glance backward to see the dead had already crossed half the hall. Half as fast as me during a full run, I couldn't tell if that was a bad or good thing.

There was no debris in the hall and I managed a full sprint my vision tunnelling so that I almost missed the entrance to the kitchen, which would have been bad. I didn't know how to get to my lift other than through there.

I entered the room fast and crashed into a table tumbling over it and taking only a reflexive second to grasp my soon to be bruised hips before I pushed backwards shoving the table beneath the doors handle. That would delay them some.

Whatever peace the barricade had afforded my shattered nerves died swiftly as I felt a cold hand wrap around my bicep reaching from the shadowy storage area to my left. Instinct prevailed as I drove an elbow into the shaded clove and then a kick that was more of a push than anything else, both shots were aimed low to avoid the sharp jaws hidden in the shadows and I felt them connect cleanly.

The grip slacked and I fell tumbling backwards my heart jumping into my throat as a ghastly blood covered face came into the light and the crowd following pounded against the reinforced door. I clambered to my feet and found the counter sweeping my gaze over it for a weapon. I had to get past that one to get out of the kitchen and I had to do it fast.

My hand found a cleaver.

I wrapped both hands around the thin handle and drove the sharp edge down between the dead man's eyes, once, twice, three times. I only stopped breaking from the red haze my instincts had driven me into certain it wouldn't rise again as the door creaked and cracked my followers driving the splintering wood apart.

I moved past the fallen body and deeper into the kitchen pulling obstacles down as I went, oven and fridge doors to bar the path and anything that could be pulled down was splayed along the path.

I finally escaped the kitchen the dead not far behind barely inconvenienced by my hasty traps and sprinted the last stretch of hallway feeling my lungs burn fiercer and fiercer somewhere in the back of my mind. When I reached the debris filled stairwell my ankle jarred as I put my weight awkwardly on it moving too fast over the uneven ground.

Awkwardly I threw myself at the wall reaching up for Sasuke's arm. He caught me but for a moment I feared he wouldn't lift me as his hand slide over my sweat slicked skin, then the other joined it and I came rising through the air as the man pulled. The low groans of the dead entered room just as I reached the second floor falling into the boys arms.

I stayed in his grip panting and choking on my laboured breaths thoroughly covering the poor man in sweat as I enjoyed for a moment the feeling of strong warm alive arms wrapped tightly around me. I gave a giggle as I felt something probing against my stomach. What an awkward time and yet it was almost pleasant after the horror of moving around down there.

"Happy…to…see…me?" I asked the boy between laboured breaths glancing up at him and offering a slightly perverted grin. I had to say I was a little flattered to draw the reaction, I'd felt a little lacking compared to Teagan and Hinata. The two woman certainly had quite the obvious…assets.

"I think that's yours actually." Came his dry reply and it took me a moment to realise that exactly it was. Panicked as I'd been I hadn't realised I'd shoved the cleaver into my belt.

Self-confidence set right back down to zero.

* * *

The more I thought about it the more this island seemed set up to be some field test of a horror movie. The characters were always from different walks of life, divided by paranoia and there always seemed to be several woman dressed entirely inappropriately for the situation.

This had all the airs of being set up for someone's amusement, and our latest discovery seemed to add weight to the theory that at least one of the people responsible for this situation was perverted to all hell.

"Well…I guess it's a little better." I offered as Tenten glared at the outfits before her, we'd found what seemed to be a home economics classroom. It seemed before they had shut the school down the students had been preparing costumes for Halloween, though given the rather adult nature of the ones before us I thought it was more likely they'd been store bought and planted here.

"I think my underwear covers more than most of this stuff." She muttered gesturing to a barbarian themed outfit that I supposed strategically positioned could cover everything but only just.

"There is a pair of pants." Indeed there was a single pair of pants part of what might have been a Buffy themed costume. They were made of bright red leather and I guessed at least one size too small for Tenten. She raised a single eyebrow in my direction.

"You got some lube hidden on you?" She asked, I was pretty sure I blushed despite myself as she stuck a hand out mockingly in waiting.

"Cause there's no natural way I'm fitting into those." She'd lifted the pants glaring at them with unhidden hostility before shrugging and dropping them anyway stepping into the legs and attempting to pull them up. She got as far as her mid thighs before they wouldn't go any higher. She threw me a glare I didn't notice, well until she coughed falsely to draw my attention back to her anyway.

"Come 'ere. And stop glancing away like that, I've been half naked all day I've given up on the modest thing." She barked whipping her jersey up past her hips and tying it loosely beneath her breasts. I hadn't actually seen her underwear but couldn't really help it now. Pikachu waved happily at me from the front of the small clothe, I laughed, Tenten blushed, then glared and punched me in the stomach muttering something unpleasant along with an excuse I didn't quite hear.

"Grab here and lift." The blush still dusted her cheeks and I gave a small 'yes mam' before gripping the leather pants and yanking upward. The woman raised bodily into the air with a curse and may have slide at most an inch further into the tight fabric.

"Hang on." It was an infinitely strange moment as I tried to jiggle the girl lower and she did the same grabbing underneath my arms to try and force herself down, I felt her calves snake around my thighs as she got further in and quested for more leverage. She was almost into the pants when I felt a zipper poking my left hand...that would have been easier.

"Almost there." She breathed just as the door swung open. We glanced dumbly at our audience for a second before releasing each other hastily. I could feel my own cheeks heating and Tentens matched but Sakura and the trailing Naruto seemed unaware and didn't comment on what they'd seemed to have walked in on.

"You guys found some clothes, Naruto can you find Hinata?" Sakura spoke prompting me to announce that yes we'd found clothes…and had done nothing more. Tenten threw me a glare for the distinctly unsmooth comment. Naruto followed diligently, since he'd returned to us he'd been throwing Sakura looks of admiration and hadn't argued with any task she'd set him.

"Here, these look like your size." Announced the chiropractor throwing Tenten what as first could have been confused as shoes, the strappy sandals had come from what could loosely be called a geisha outfit if one didn't know what a geisha was…or attaked her with scissors. They were the only ones large enough to fit the tall woman though.

"Add that to the list, whoever trapped us here has a foot fetish." Muttered the brunette to me donning the simple shoes regardless, she grabbed a dark tank top leaving the room I supposed to change in privacy. The smaller woman's eyes turned to me once we were alone a strange curiosity shining within the emerald ords.

"So you and Teagan are…" she trailed off rolling her eyes in a way that was strangely suggestive. I was quick to deny the accusation though I was hardly offended by it, it was just hardly the time for such things. I searched through the clothing to try and find some suited for a man, a fair amount of this shirt had already been converted to bandages.

"Seems the perfect time actually, you know just in case." She spoke tongue darting out to ghost her lips. Before I could address her comment though the door opened again to allow Hinata in.

* * *

"You alright there?" I threw at the lazy ass as he climbed back to his feet. Smart as he was he was as useful as piss and shit in a fight. I thought the Milf would have had a little more balls when things went down but she'd just started screaming like a goddamn moron.

"Hey it's okay." Shikamaru shushed the hysterical woman not bothering to dignify me with any kind of response. I wasn't even sure why we'd dragged her worthless whining- my eyes caught the sliver of hot pink where the backside of her sweat pants had ripped- oh yeah, that was it.

"We need to keep moving." I grumbled, we were following the trail of what might have been the fat man Choji so there hadn't been a whole lot of opposition but with the noise that shrieking bimbo had caused there would be soon.

The ever present question, sex or safety, it might actually be the death of me at this rate.

* * *

Aaaaand that's number three. As I've said I haven't decided on the pairings yet but I'd like some feedback on how people are feeling things, so if you like there'll be a poll up or you can just review and tell me your thoughts there.

Of course you should review and way, show a little support and make me a happy happy guy.

R&R


	4. First Taste of the Nightlife

Title; Lucky

Disclaimer; Nope I don't own any of the Naruto characters.

Okay so the pairing will be SasuHina in the end, but don't expect me to avoid muddying the waters a bit first. Just trust me, in the end SasuHina.

Chapter 4-

* * *

"We need to take Ino some food." The blonde put in awkwardly as we awaited our meal. I'd have preferred to help but there was a rather limited amount to do and Hinata was the only one of us that had figured out how to work the foreign hotplate. That left Hinata at the stove, the kettle boiling on its own and the rest of us twiddling our thumbs.

"I don't need to do anything for Ino." Came Hinata's soft voice after a moment. From what I'd heard and figured the blonde had thrown her to the wolves, she certainly didn't owe her anything.

"She'll starve, you really okay with that?" put in the blonde his sapphire eyes scanning the room imploringly. His guilt tripping didn't reach the Hyuuga though with her back turned.

"She can look after herself, she'd been pretty eager to be on her own after all." Our brunette leader spoke up looking unimpressed at the blondes attempts to sway us his way.

"It's getting dark Naruto. The dead, they'll be far more dangerous in the dark." Sakura spoke up prompting the blonde to descend into a brooding silence. I guessed his adherence to her could be quite useful at times.

"The dead, that's what you call them Pinkie?" asked Tenten throwing a teasing grin at the other woman, they had seemed to have sparked up a strange friendship between them after partnering up. We had all sort of bonded a little with the exception of Naruto, his concern for Ino and insistence on returning to her seemed to put him at ends with the rest of us, though Hinata in particular.

Of course everyone but Naruto had noticed the infected status, the blonde had lost his bag fleeing from the crowd downstairs and none of us were quite sure how to broach the subject.

"They are dead, Teagan. Besides it's better than ghouls." Returned the more respectful Sakura. So far she was the only one who insisted on using Tenten's given name and it seemed to agitate the brunette about as much as Pinkie irritated Sakura.

"They're zombies." Muttered Naruto mostly to himself it seemed. I suppose they were somewhat similar to those old movie monsters. The idea of calling them zombies though just didn't quite sit well with me, it felt like we'd be abandoning ourselves completely to the ridiculousness of this situation.

Any further argument came to a sudden halt though as we all quieted to better hear the busy Hyuuga. At some point while she'd been preparing the food she'd begun to hum lightly to herself, a soft airy tune.

"What is that?" I asked lightly the tune ringing a bell in the back of my mind that went unanswered. It was so familiar and yet I couldn't place it. The Hyuuga woman for her part seemed to become quite nervous at having four pairs of eyes suddenly riveted on her, she blushed awkwardly at having been caught singing.

"I don't know, it just sort of popped into my head." Admitted Hinata. No, there was a lot more to it than that, both Tenten and Sakura had reacted the same as I had. Another connection perhaps.

The kettle came to a boil a moment later and we settled down into a silence that could have almost been companionable, if not for the brooding waves coming from the blonde or the tension the rest of us carried.

"We'll split up to take watches through the night, school boy and I can go first." Announced Tenten, I'd have to talk to her about that little nickname. The plan drew something from Naruto around a mouthful of noodles before he hastily choked them down and repeated that he could take a middle shift alone.

When all was said and down we'd figured that Tenten and I could take four hours together, Naruto three after that and Sakura and Hinata another four after him. Naruto would have an extra hour to rest but it seemed fair given his rest would be more sporadic than ours. It was also a long time to stay put around the things downstairs but there was no telling when we'd be able to rest again and none of us wanted to move outside without full daylight at our backs.

* * *

"You alright love?" the white haired pretty boy quipped to me. I threw him a glare tightening the tourniquet on my leg. I might have been less temperamental had I been provided a little more clothing, Garaa had a full double breasted suit, B had his damned costume and Suigetsu the freak had his tracksuit. And what do I get, my damned panties and a v neck. I'd be reporting someone to the authorities once I escaped this place.

"Don't call me love, asshole." I shot back. I wasn't in the mood for this flirty bastard, not after the hell we'd just crawled through. The broken air vent I'd just been in was still hanging precariously above the mob of hungry mouths and I could see the gleam of scarlet on the broken jagged metal that had cut into my leg.

"You're a lucky one though princess. Pretty strong too, I thought you were a goner." He continued on unperturbed. Yeah real strong, I'd just managed to get a hold of that iron bar during my fall, almost bloody wrenched my shoulder out of its socket too but it kept me from falling into that pit of Undead hands and teeth. I didn't bother dignifying the shark tooth bastard with a response.

"Garaa, B! Are you alright?" I called out, the pair were still trapped the other side of the gap. I couldn't see any way for the young business man or the TV personality to get across now.

"We're fine miss Tsunade but we'll have to find another way across." Boomed the elder man's voice full of confidence, the red head didn't seem so confident though but then we'd all seen what happened to others before when they got cocky. Genma had been all but torn to pieces when he'd pushed ahead of us into this building. I could still hear the howls he'd released as the cold fingers had torn though his torso ripping organs free.

That had shaken us.

He'd been the first casualty in here but not the last, there had been three more deceased notices posted on my phones app since we'd been split up. Our little group had been fortunate enough to get onto these walk ways but the others were still down below somewhere.

* * *

"How will we deal with them?" I put the question to the brunette as I idly leaned against the railing. Whatever these things were they were nothing if not persistent, the majority of them were still clambering over each other pushing against the stairs crumbled ruins.

"We could make some kind of spear, pick them off. I'd rather kill them now than leave them free." Answered the woman without much conviction. I suppose it could get messy if too many corpses piled up, the remaining ones might get up here using them as stepping stones. I was surprised to feel the tall woman's body press against my back her arms snaking around my waist and her chin resting just on my shoulder.

"It's cold." She answered the unspoken question simply. I couldn't disagree with her and the shared body heat was quite nice.

"I've got a confession to make." She whispered huskily, lips so close to my ear that I had to fight with myself not to shiver. For all the tomboy masculinity she displayed there was something distinctly feminine and seductive in her throaty whisper.

"Oh yeah, what's that?" I asked. There wasn't much of a mood for romance, not with the scent of the corpses below fouling the air or their low chilling groans. Sakura had probably been right about the situation encouraging some kind of desperate liaison but there'd be little romance to it when or if it happened.

"I don't want to tell you. We might have to you know…kill each other, it'll be easier the less we know." She offered instead and yet I felt her grip tightening around me all the same and her head roll slightly her cheek pressing against the side of my neck.

"I disagree, the better we know each other the less likely we'll be to abandon each other. You wouldn't let me become one of those things." I offered, I certainly didn't want to become like that. No, a dignified death would be far better.

"So you say now...We've met before you know." Tenten admitted going on to explain her mother had worked on a play with mine and she'd watched over me during rehearsals, I'd been about five at the time and she'd been fourteen.

"It's not a surprise, Hinata met me as I child too. Do you recognise anyone else?" I returned. It was another connection and more so this one was through my mother too and her work as an actress. I tried thinking back but there were always any number of suits wandering around my family, business partners or associates of my father or an agent hoping to represent my mother.

"Can't say that I do, but someone could know me. Or maybe it's something stupid like blood I donated once went to someone here." Answered the woman struggling a little to get more comfortably wrapped around me.

"Come on, they're making me uncomfortable." Prompted the brunette releasing me. Yes I suppose there was something off putting about all the shuffling corpses below. We stepped back into the office and settled ourselves on the mildly uncomfortable couch the brunette wasting no time in cuddling back up against me with a shiver.

"Have you ever been in love?" asked the brunette strangely after a couple of quiet moments shifting her position to glance up at me. The eye contact made me feel slightly strange, her large doe eyes where so at odds with her tough persona and I was uncomfortably aware of just how close our faces were in this position.

"Strange question. No, I've cared for woman before certainly but never enough that I'd call it love. And you?" I answered earning a hum of approval from the woman, and something about how a young man shouldn't rush to fall in love.

"You wanted us to be better acquainted school boy. Once I thought I was, but I fell more for my idea of him than the man himself." Answered the brunette shifting once more in my lap to straddle my legs. There was no real way to avoid looking at her now and distinctly less as her hands slide up to cup both sides of my face. The moonlight added a silvery glow to her eyes now and a faint gleam to her bare skin.

"Don't make too much of this. I just get a little sentimental sometimes." She spoke in the same low husky whisper she'd used earlier before pressing her face closer her dry chapped lips pressing against my own. It was the gentle sort of kiss that I wouldn't have thought the woman would use. Her left hand slid higher into my hair as her lips pressed more purposefully into mine. Her leather clad thighs slid further up to wrap around my hips and my hands moved instinctively one sliding over a taunt thigh and the other planting itself on a hip as her tongue flickered against my lips before she pulled back eyes heavy and lidded, her breath just slightly pitched and laboured.

"So just what should I make of that?" I asked already half guessing the answer, same as Sakura. Same as me if I was being a bit more honest, hope was slipping away bit by bit and I was thinking of all the things I'd like to do again before death caught up with me. A stiff drink and a decent lay certainly were pretty high on that list.

"Something a little sweet in case it all goes sour." She answered, apparently playing cutesy was among her list of hidden talents. She hadn't moved off me yet though and I began to wonder just how much a little was as she began to lean in just a little closer.

Any thoughts of how bad an idea all this was or what a mistake it might become in this hostile environment died the moment her lips fell on mine again and she pressed her kiss deeper.

* * *

Not for the first time I wondered at the questionable choice of two of my travelling companions. The bowl cut lunatic was a force to be reckoned with swinging that bat around as if he'd been born with it in his hands and the other man was the kind of calculating you only saw in professional soldiers, killers and sociopaths.

But they had their problems too. The hooded Shino was too quiet and I was certain he'd seen them coming but hadn't bothered shouting us a warming and Gai was the opposite, it had been his shouting that drew these things to us.

I pulled the teary eyed Kin along looping her arm over my shoulders as she threatened to fall under her own weight. They'd caught her when they'd come through the treeline, one biting into her leg tearing through the leggings to tear a lump of flesh from her, another the opposite arm and the last throwing itself on her back. The last hadn't bitten her but it's sharp claws had cut deep groves into her ribs on the left side and her right shoulder tearing her blouse open with a messy splay of blood.

I wasn't sure how we'd gotten them off her we'd just reacted striking at the three as she rushed forward panic stricken. More had joined those three from the sounds of it as we fled through the canopy the two boys flanking either side of us as I tried to keep the girl in my arms awake and moving.

We weren't moving nearly fast enough though and I threw a glance at either of the guys, Kin needed to be carried and I was running on empty.

"Temari, let go." It was Shino that answered the look stepping close to us. I unhooked the woman's arm from my shoulders and breathed a sigh of relief as Shino's hand reached out. I was too shocked to respond as the hand slammed into Kin sending her tumbling backward as Shino's hand tangled itself in my tank top nearly tearing it off as he dragged me along.

I could hear Kin's screams as the horde descended upon her fallen form.

By the time that I came to my senses enough to do more than run and follow woodenly Gai had led us inside some seemingly abandoned building and both he and Shino were busy barricading the thick iron slab of a door.

I rounded on the silent man hammering a fist into his cheek that jarred my hand painfully. I paid it little heed though grasping his collar with my other hand and whirling him around pressing him to a wall. I raised my still throbbing hand ready to hit him again and would have except for Gai's interference.

"The fuck is wrong with you!" I snarled pulling my arm free of the middle aged man child's grip. The younger man took his time to fix his glasses back into place before he drew his cell from his pocket to aid his answer. He flicked down to Kin's name, now highlighted with a glowing orange 'infected'.

"She was a liability." Was his simple response, and she could be an asset distracting the mob for us. I gave the hooded man a long dark look as I released him and backed away.

"You're a cold son of a bitch aren't you?" I spat out regretting the choice to throw my fate in with this sort of person. Gai was surprisingly stoic in the situation, Kin's death had evaporated his earlier boyish cheer.

First chance I had I'd be parting company with this lunatic.

* * *

"Where's that blonde idiot?" came Tenten's first question after she'd awoken, her bed mate seemed far more interested in getting a bite to eat though trying to aid Sakura in preparing breakfast…more instant noodles.

Yup.

"He set out at first light to get some food to that blonde bimbo. Sent the crowd scattering around the building too, once they heard him bumbling around down there." I answered, despite the trouble he was causing I had to give him some points for refusing to abandon his friend.

"Great, does he know she's probably turned into one of those?" continued the brunette looking anything but pleased. I couldn't blame her, we'd be having significantly more trouble getting out of our safe haven now. Sanctuary turned prison, I never was much of a fan of irony.

"We told him but I don't know that he believed us." The kettle clicked to a boil and that seemed to end the topic of Naruto. We'd probably keep a check on the phones of what his condition was but there'd be no chasing after him, too much trouble for no return. Though speaking of the phone.

"There's been a few changes on the other's status." I spoke up prompting the newly risen pair to go for their phones quickly. Surprisingly there hadn't been any infections or deaths but a third status had appeared in pale blue; Injured. Seeing as I hadn't gained it for my sprained wrist and neither Sasuke or Tenten had for their gashes it was a safe bet the message meant a heavier injury, maybe a disabling one. Choji, Kurenai and only moments ago Naruto had all gained the status.

Other than that there had been few changes. Choji became linked with the other small group of Kankuro, Shikamaru and Kurenai, which gave me some cause for worry given his newly injured status and how he'd gained it. Kakashi's status was still blank but a small line connected him to another blanked out face.

"Wish this damn thing would tell us more." Intoned the Uchiha, I had to agree. This thing teased us more than it gave useable information.

"Other people can worry about themselves." Gritted out our brunette leader poking her meal with disinterest. Eating at the moment was more of a conscious choice than an instinctual one.

"There's plenty of noisy stuff up here, we could get them riled up the opposite side of the building, throw down a flare of two to keep them distracted and make our way out this side." Spoke up Sakura, we'd swapped our weapons around a little and she now held the fire axe. My wrist still couldn't support the weight leaving me with the single handed cleaver instead.

* * *

"Seems as good a plan as any, how about direction. We saw a path leading west, how about you two?" Tenten spoke throwing the question to both Hinata and I.

"Yeah, we passed a small path I think." I answered glancing toward the Hyuuga for confirmation. It had been narrow through and the canopy close knit. We probably wouldn't have to worry about an ambush from the sides given the thick plant life and those creatures inability to sneak as such but it would make fleeing difficult too.

"I think we should head east. We've no guarantee some of these creatures won't follow us from the building and their groaning always brings more of them. The fence on the east side is still standing so it'll stop them from pursuing us on the path." Sakura put in. I was beginning to enjoy having her clever mind around but pointed out my own worries.

"It's the same westward." She offered with a shrug. I recalled the lazy Shikamaru's opinion on all this, like a video game, level two offered more freedom but both choices would still be more difficult than what had come before us.

"It's decided so. Pinkie can lead with me then and you two can bring up the rear." Spoke Tenten, the last on the matter before we settled down for what I hoped would not be our last meal.

* * *

Karin Uzumaki was a powerful woman, a queen to rule the world if there ever was one. So it wasn't much of a surprise that she'd survived through the night on this hellish place, or that the men had fled out of fear of keeping company with a strong woman. It wasn't a surprise one of those pushy men had given her a love bit either.

It did annoy her though how much the bite had affected her, she'd been sweaty and exhausted since the rat faced man had nipped at her forearm. It hadn't been much of a bite, barely a graze but Shizune thought he might have been diseased or something.

It would pass though, she was sure of that, she just needed a little help at the moment that was all.

"I need a rest Karin." The dark toned girl complained lightly setting her down against a wall. Karin couldn't fault her, she looked as exhausted as the Uzumaki felt her tanned skin dripping with sweat. Karin was surprised to realise just how appealing Shizune seemed in the moment, how nice her skin looked.

"K-karin! What are you doing?" The Uzumaki leaned in her face brushing against the other woman's exposed collar bone, she reached her hands out one wrapping around Shizune's slim waist and the other trailing up a strong thigh, and such strong thighs she had…good strong tender muscles. Karin's tongue flickered out instinctively and she tasted a drop of the dark woman's sweat.

"Shush Shizune, shush. Just a little taste." Breathed Karin opening her mouth wide and tightening her grip as Shizune tried to pull away. She didn't hear her friend's cries as sharp teeth bit into her flesh or feel it as a shaky fist hammered into her temple over and over again desperate for release until with a pained spasm it stilled and fell lifeless to the stone floor.

Karin had drifted away and failed to feel anything as her body was usurped.

* * *

Chapter 4 ya dig it? Feel a little bad for Shizune but that's the way it is in a zombie tale, being good and helpful will get you killed, being evil and a jerk will get you killed karmatically, being smart will get you killed, (cause it's scary when the genre savvy chick or guy bites the bullet) being dumb will get you killed in a way to amuse the audience. The only thing that will really help is plot armour and that can crack pretty quickly in this genre.

Also a bit of a companion one-shot gone up to this chapter else wheres on my profile.

Anyway questions, opinions, well wishes? Leave a review.

By the way would anyone like a character list posted up, ages, occupations and starting groups of different characters, that kind of thing?

R&R


	5. Meeting the Staff

Title; Lucky

Disclaimer; Nope I don't own any of the Naruto characters.

Okay so the pairing will be SasuHina in the end, but don't expect me to avoid muddying the waters a bit first. Just trust me, in the end SasuHina.

Some reviewers have requested I use a heading to announce whom's point of view a certain piece is coming from but I'm afraid that's not going to happen. I feel it would dispense some of the suspence and mystery element and make the narration too much of an open hand.

* * *

Chapter 5-

I couldn't see the others but that wasn't really important, not yet anyway.

The stumbling figures meandered along the path, tripping and falling off the path more often than not. These ones were more run down than the others. At least half of them were missing important pieces of their bodies, an arm torn off at the elbow, a rib cage torn open and one former woman was missing her entire jaw bone.

I heard a soft crunch behind me and glanced around to see Sakura's petite form slide close to me. She gestured upward and behind the moving horde and I managed to pick-out Tenten's figure hanging high in the tree branches. How'd she get up there so quickly.

I was more concerned with Hinata though, she'd been in the centre of our group beside Sakura when we'd heard the horde approaching. I held out that she had to be hiding somewhere, there hadn't been a scream or any sound that gave away a struggle.

The horde continued to creep along slowly, moaning and groaning brokenly and highly. I found myself strangely grateful for the noise though, it had allowed us to hear their approach and for the moment covered our own dampened noises. It didn't make the hungry growls any more unsettling though.

I jumped a little as I felt Sakura's hand tug at me pulling me toward the back of the crowd. I trailed after her awkwardly and bumped against her more than once on the uneven ground, she led me to the underbrush till we met up with the silent Hinata carefully watching the trailing end of the crowd.

We waited another handful of tense minutes before Tenten joined us slinging down from her hiding spot. If I had to say which of us was the most shaky I'd be hard pressed.

"There's an opening a little bit ahead." Whispered the brunette, perhaps the only human in existence who'd think of double tasking when evading a horde of the Undead. I wasn't so sure that was strictly a good thing.

There wasn't much of a choice in the matter given how little we knew of the islands geography so we pushed on heading for the opening and whatever lay there.

* * *

There was something distinctly creepy about my companions I thought. After all if a group was capable of unsettling my instincts during such a situation then it was quite the testament to their level of creepiness.

The eldest, or at least he seemed the oldest of them, was unnaturally pale and weathered looking but on the surface only. He moved about with an unnatural gait and swiftness that was in direct contrast with what his appearance gave testament to.

The other two the young red head and the gargantuan man seemed to have a relationship with him too, though rather different relationships as it were. The large man behaved almost like an underling or a servant whereas the red head treated the old man like a partner, though both seemed to be begrudging of the fact and seemed intent on one upping each other.

The large man had taken to praying while we were scouting the church and I seemed to be the first back.

"Well there's no weapons unless you want to swing a cross at them." I remarked most likely in poor taste given the man's apparent faith. Not that I cared all that much, any faith I had in any God dried up once I found myself in this place.

The orange haired man glanced toward me but didn't speak up, which was disappointing given that even the sound of someone cursing me out would be much preferred to the noise of those things scrapping at the door. It might even distract me from the reeking corpses lining the aisles.

I could pick out six I thought, if I listened carefully then I could pick out six pairs of claws working in different rhythms on the thick door. That wasn't a good thing, there had only been two when we'd barred the door and a third in the distance. We needed to find a back door soon.

"If you're done then give me a hand." I spat at Juugo attempting to shift one of the pews to bar the door and having just a little less than zero success.

"Are you afraid Hyuuga?" muttered the giant raising from his worship, with his massive strength the task was simple, almost effortless in fact.

"Shouldn't I be?" I imagined few people would consider being devoured by a legion of dead monstrosities as anything less than panic worthy.

"No, death should not be feared." Responded the other man with all the emotion of a tree stump on a quiet day. Footsteps echoed from behind us a ways off yet and I found myself surprised in my desire for one of the two suits company again.

"So what's your story big guy, what did you do in the real world?" I tried to stare the conversation away from religion and that whole awkward area as we continued to work. Or as Juugo did anyway, the man was almost dragging me along at this point he put so much power into his movements.

"I was a monster." Announced the giant, no trace of a lie in his clear even tone. It sort of killed the conversation. The footsteps finally reached us and I glanced back to the source, the eldest man stood tall watching us his yellowed eyes gleaming and a bemused smirk creasing his lips.

"We have discovered an exit gentlemen." He spoke crossing his arms and raising an eyebrow at our barricade, I suppose it had been unnecessary after all.

"Yes…Orochimaru." I got the impression there would be a reverent title of 'Lord' inserted in there somewhere if I wasn't around. There was something off about my companions, enough that the more I saw of their ways the more the Undead appeared like they should have been my secondary concern.

* * *

Twenty metres away we heard the sounds of conflict, serious fighting. There was the boom of something massive hitting the forest floor and a popping that sounded similar to firecrackers that must have been an automatic weapon.

I crept forward silently relieved when I caught sight of the Uchiha by my side. I glanced backward to see Sakura and a slightly more reluctant Hinata moving to join us too but shooed them back.

As we reached the clearing the sounds soon found frightful images to go with them. In the centre of the clearing pinned down underneath a hail of cracking gunfire was a massive black and blue figure clutching a massive grey and crimson hammer. I could only make out two of the gunmen from where I stood. The first was a powerfully built middle aged man dressed in an interesting attire consisting of green spandex and a Kevlar vest, the other was a younger man in thick clothing and a pair of blacked out glasses.

Despite the hail of gunfire though the creature appeared unharmed and it was only a matter of time before it was free to retaliate. The third gun cut out first and then the two men's almost simultaneously and I was surprised by each man's unique reaction. The younger man began a clumsy reload and the other more insanely sprinted forward snatching up an axe as he went.

The creature was sluggish reacting after the assault and the man managed to connect with a swing piercing the giants armour at the thigh and earning what seemed less like a pained shout and more like a grunt of annoyance from the thing. The hammers tail whipped around quickly sweeping the man's feet out from beneath him before the head crashed down crushing the man's torso with a wet squelch.

The ground seemed to shake as a wave of scarlet splashed out from beneath the hammer.

The man paused in his actions before dropping his weapon abandoning any notion of battling the creature. The dark clothed monster stalked forward dragging its hammer in a way that seemed lazy given how easily it had whipped it through the air before.

I expected another bloody spectacle but found myself unwilling to move and try to stop it. I wanted to say it was pragmatism that stilled me but against that invincible tyrant I knew fear played a much deeper part.

The creature didn't attack. Instead it released its hammer allowing it to smack the ground dully as its hands went to its waist. I watched as it unravelled a chain and collar from its belt before none to gently it lashed the leather trap around the man's neck. No gunfire came from the third figure weather out of fear of hitting their companion or in similar surrender I didn't know but I watched the giant stalk out of view dragging the man with it and heard the rattle of the chains as another prisoner was taken.

The three figures marched back into view and I saw the third shooter for the first time, a tanned blonde that bore a remarkable beauty despite her rough state. She seemed ready to vomit doubling over as the creature dragged her past the blood stain of her former companion and into the tree line.

When I glanced over at Sasuke I saw he's drew his cell phone from his jeans and did the same. Three new pictures had been added under group 'C', Gai Might newly 'deceased' alongside Temari Sabaku and Shino Aburame both 'captured'.

Woodenly we returned to the others.

"There's supplies up ahead, it's messy though." Voiced the Uchiha his eyes regarding me with an expression that required more mental concentration that I had at the moment to decipher.

"We need to move quickly, that noise will have attracted at least some ghouls." I finally spoke my mind finally settling into its natural pragmatic state. I'd figure out a plan for dealing with the hunter thing when and if we encountered him later, for now there were more immediate concerns.

The open area was distinctly worse on closer examination, not only for the sight and smell of the recently crushed man but for the bullet marks carved into the ground and the dead ghouls lining the trees, some crushed, some shot but most both.

We snatched up what we could reasonably carry taking about two bags each before scurrying away. It could have been my imagination but I could already hear the sounds of ghouls closing in on the battle field. The creature had set out westward, or at least in the direction we'd decided was west and we took the eastern path instead moving at a swift pace for over a half an hour before we found a place to stop.

Sasuke and I managed to climb one of the low hanging willows easily but the vertically challenged Sakura and injured Hinata had more trouble requiring a hand up each.

From within my plundered bags I withdrew first a heavy Kevlar vest that I would have appreciated more if I hadn't seen how poorly it had served Gai. The second was much more impressive, a sleek black pistol, two clips of ammunition, a holster and a belt. I pulled the armour over my head and holstered my new weapon around my waist.

It seemed Hinata had also acquired an armoured vest and a machine pistol similar to the ones that had proved in effective against the hunter. Sakura had picked up a smaller handgun and a large rifle that looked sort of silly lying on her lap, she did appear to have some previously unmentioned skills though as she checked the weapons over with practised hands. I raised an eyebrow at her.

"Dad was a gun nut, cleaning a nine millimetre or hunting was his idea of bonding." She replied with a slightly bitter grin. Somehow I suspected she was appreciating that bonding a whole lot more all of a sudden. The Uchiha looked distinctly like a kid at Christmas holding a pistol similar to my own in one hand and a large calibre revolver in the other.

I didn't miss the way Sakura's hands ghosted over his as she reached over to show him how to work his new toys, or that she sat a little closer than was necessary. I decided to help Hinata equip her vest instead of indulging my newfound possessive nature.

"You were daddies little girl huh?" I overheard the Uchiha question and Sakura answer with something I couldn't quite hear but was certain was some flirty comment. Damn black widow of a woman trying to seduce the schoolb…on second hand forget that line of thought, the smaller woman was also younger than I was.

"You saw something back there." I wasn't sure if the Hyuuga was asking a question or not but the piercing quality her pale eyes held at the moment compelled me to answer just in case.

"Yeah." I breathed fastening the final strap on the vest.

"What was it?" I was impressed she didn't write my shaken nerves off as the ghouls in the clearing, the quiet woman had a keen eye for certain.

"A monster, there were three of them fighting it but they barely scratched it. It killed one and captured the other. Dragged them off." I could see relating what I'd seen wasn't as startling as seeing it had been, Hinata still had her wits about her and appeared more pensive than anything else.

"You think its hunting all of us? What for?" Hinata questioned frowning deep. I'd been wondering that myself actually, the thing had went to the trouble of capturing the two uninfected humans and judging by the crushed ghouls it seemed protective of its prisoners unless of course they posed a threat, one of any kind.

"Going back to the video game metaphor it was a boss monster, something far above the standard dregs." Sasuke spoke up apparently having heard our conversation. That was great, so the monstrosity probably had to be dealt with to even leave this bizarre prison.

"I guess we're hoping one of the bigger guns works then." I muttered, or maybe there was a rocket launcher hidden around here somewhere. Still there was something to the bigger gun theory, I was no specialist outside of the occasional video game but the large rounds in the rifle should have much more stopping power than the machine pistols.

"How many rounds does everyone have?" I asked, as Sakura offered me the fire axe, I refused given that at this point the crowbar was what my hand knew best. With only two clips of I estimated ten bullets each I came up worst. The Hyuuga was runner up with two clips of thirty each. Sasuke had twenty for the nine millimetre and only twelve rounds for the revolver. Sakura had only a single clip of eight for her tiny handgun and ten loose bullets for the single action rifle.

"We're not having a shoot out anyway." Sakura muttered dryly, I could see that alright. Even assuming Sasuke, Hinata and I managed to use our new weapons with some degree of skill and didn't blow of own hands off in the process we'd get through only a handful of enemies before we'd have to resort to throwing the weapons at the ghouls.

"That's the point, these aren't meant for the grunts just that big guy." Sasuke spoke up again but I felt it was more pointed at me. Besides our initial leanings a night together and the harrowing experience we'd just had, I guess we'd sort of formed a bond.

* * *

"So you write kid's books, what's that like?" voiced the pink haired woman falling into step beside me.

"Sort of a strange time for small talk don't you think?" I returned not really minding that I came off as a little rude, we didn't need to make any unnecessary noise.

"Can you think of a better time for it?" she returned with surprising softness. Maybe it would be useful to talk to this woman, so far I'd gotten a decent grasp on who the other two were but I couldn't really figure Sakura out. The night before we'd spent most of our watch half asleep in silence.

"It's sort of what you do when your actual books aren't sexy or witty enough for the publishers. And you." I remarked less bitterly than I would have a few years ago, I'd started to enjoy my work after I'd gotten over the sting of being told I wasn't charming or clever.

"Ouch, chiropractor's sort of the kid's writer of medicine." Offered the woman, a nice peace making answer, give us a bond. Any response for good or bad died on my lips as a noise up a head startled us and raised our guards.

It was probably unnecessary as the noise proved to be Tenten doubling over in guff laughter, attractive indeed, and the Uchiha glaring at her.

* * *

"Those three, would you call me crazy if I said I recognised them." Sasuke put the question to me later as we moved further ahead of the other two.

"Only if you said you'd dreamt of them last night." I returned glancing toward him out of the corner of my eye, I wasn't surprised to see him nibble on her bottom lip and throw me a look that was half dirty and half relieved.

"That's pretty good if it's a guess." The brunette came back but I doubted I could convince him that it had been just a guess now even if I wanted to.

"I had the same dream I think. I'd more or less forgotten about it this morning but when I saw them fighting." Offered the dark youth sheepishly. I could hardly fault him, I'd completely forgotten about the strange dream myself.

"Was this before or after your wet dream?" I asked voice rising to sing song, the question earned me an ugly glare and I grinned back at him. I still had it.

"There were more people in my dreams but it's pretty blurry now, an injured blonde girl, some red head in a suit and a big guy…dressed as an octopus." His tone wavered near the end, I guess he was worried he'd begun divulging a bizarre dream now rather than our apparently shared vision.

"That was B, he's a kids TV presenter." That I'd remembered at least, they'd been in some kind of factory or warehouse more or less trapped. I wondered if they had dreamt of us…that could be awkward.

"You watch kids cartoons?" the Uchiha's tone had taken a sort of smug superiority that I felt deserved his taking down a peg or two.

"My daughters love it, I kind of have to." I answered taking perhaps a little too much pleasure as a barely veiled expression of shock and horror lit up his features. I think he might have actually been choking on the air itself, which was impressive in a way.

"Yeah since their daddy ran out on us then wound up back in the joint they've been my world. The triplets do need a father though." I wasn't quite sure when I'd given it away, it might have had something to do with my inability to hid my giggling. Sasuke still seemed hesitant though to call my bluff and spent a few moments eying me carefully before I finally broke.

"That's not nice." He grumbled just barely audible over my laughter. Unsurprisingly Hinata and Sakura were giving us distinctly concerned looks.

* * *

And that's chapter 5, what you were expecting it to be easy for them? A couple of more hints revealed here, some death and naturally some mood dissonant silliness. Anyway let me know what you think.

R&R

Teagan 'Tenten' Charles- Twenty eight year old theatre worker specialising in action stunts. Group D. Allies; Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura Haruno and Hinata Hyuuga. Equipment; body armour, 9mm pistol, crowbar, small knife, cell phone, rope. Injuries; none.

Sasuke Uchiha- Nineteen year old philosophy student. Group D. Allies; Teagan Charles, Sakura Haruno and Hinata Hyuuga. Equipment; 9mm pistol, Magnum revolver, baseball bat, knife, flashlight, cell phone, rope. Injuries; none.

Sakura Haruno- Twenty four year old chiropractor. Group D. Allies; Teagan Charles, Sasuke Uchiha and Hinata Hyuuga. Equipment; .22 pistol, hunting rifle, fire axe, knife, cell phone, rope. Injuries; none.

Hinata Hyuuga- Twenty six year old children's author. Group D. Allies; Teagan Charles, Sasuke Uchiha and Hinata Hyuuga. Equipment; body armour, machine pistol, cleaver, knife, cell phone, rope. Injuries; wrist.

Naruto Uzumaki- Thirty two year old Mayors aid. Group D. Allies; Ino Yamanaka. Equipment; baseball bat. Injuries; dislocated shoulder.

Ino Yamanaka- Twenty nine year old secretary. Group D. Allies; Naruto Uzumaki. Equipment; knife, cell phone, rope. Injuries; infected.

Kakashi Hatake- Forty eight year old divorced English teacher. Group D. Allies; Anko Mitarashi. Equipment; rifle, shovel, knife, flashlight, cell phone, rope. Injuries; none.

Choji Akimichi- Thirty seven year old married restaurant owner and chief. Group D. Allies; none. Equipment; cell phone. Injuries; broken leg.

Kankuro Sabaku- Twenty two year old tattooist. Group D. Allies; Shikamaru Nara and Kurenai Yuhi. Equipment; Iron poker, knife, cell phone, rope. Injuries; none.

Shikamaru Nara- Twenty six year old programmer. Group D. Allies; Kankuro Sabaku and Kurenai Yuhi. Equipment; Iron poker, knife, cell phone, rope. Injuries; none.

Kurenai Yuhi- Thirty four years old, widowed and unemployed. Group D. Allies; Kankuro Sabaku and Shikamaru Nara. Equipment; knife, cell phone, rope. Injuries; none.

Temari Sabaku- Twenty one year old actress. Group C. Allies; Shino Aburame. Equipment; cell phone, rope. Injuries; none. Condition; captured.

Shino Aburame- Twenty seven year old career criminal. Group C. Allies; none. Equipment; cell phone, rope. Injuries; none. Condition; captured.

Neji Hyuuga- Thirty three year old bartender. Group C. Allies; none. Equipment; Baseball bat, knife, cell phone, rope. Injuries; none.

Juugo '?'- Twenty five years old. Group C. Allies; Orochimaru and Sasori. Equipment; knife, cell phone, rope. Injuries; none.

Sasori '?'- Thirty nine years old. Group C. Allies; Orochimaru and Juugo. Equipment; 9mm pistol, knife, cell phone, rope. Injuries; none.

Orochimaru '?'- Sixty three years old. Group C. Allies; Sasori and Juugo. Equipment; knife, cell phone, rope. Injuries; none.

Tsunade Senju- Seventeen year old student. Group A. Allies; Garaa Sabaku, Barney 'B' Mason and Suigetsu Hozuki. Equipment; knife, cell phone, rope. Injuries; leg gash.

Garaa Sabaku- Twenty eight year old business entrepreneur. Group A. Allies; Tsunade Senju, Barney 'B' Mason and Suigetsu Hozuki. Equipment; shovel, knife, cell phone, rope. Injuries; none.

Barney 'B' Mason- Forty two year old TV personality. Group A. Allies; Tsunade Senju, Garaa Sabaku and Suigetsu Hozuki. Equipment; baseball bat, knife, cell phone, rope. Injuries; none.

Suigetsu Hozuki- Twenty three year old prostitute. Group A. Allies; Tsunade Senju, Garaa Sabaku and Barney 'B' Mason. Equipment; knife, cell phone, rope. Injuries; none.


	6. The Honeymoon Suite

Title; Lucky

Disclaimer; Nope I don't own any of the Naruto characters.

Okay so the pairing will be SasuHina in the end, but don't expect me to avoid muddying the waters a bit first. Just trust me, in the end SasuHina.

Chapter 6-

* * *

I heard a frightened squeak that could have only been Hinata, seeing as it hadn't been me and I doubted Teagan or Sasuke were even physically capable of it. I whirled to see her in the grip of one of those things bucking and struggling. Before I could reach her though she'd managed to help herself driving an elbow into the creature and ducking as Sasuke's bat whipped over her head.

The frazzled brunette let out another series of squeaks I didn't doubt forcing back a scream as she was pulled backward by the now dead 'dead' thing, she only quieted as the Uchiha plucked her from the cold arms.

"It's getting too dark." I offered to the group though it was hardly necessary. We hadn't been able to detect this last group until they'd been right on top of us. I saw Teagan examining the trees around us, I guessed checking whether they were climbable though a far greater worry I thought was the cold. I'd been shivering all day despite the running and jumping and it was growing cooler and cooler by the moment.

"We'll have to spend the night in the trees, you're first Curly." Spoke Teagan offering a strange new nickname for the Hyuuga girl. While her hair had been curly before it was now more wavy as the artificial effect wore off.

Despite what she said though Teagan was first to scale the large oak before Hinata managed the task with a boost from the Uchiha and a hand from the brunette. I had to resist the urge to make another pick up joke as Sasuke gave me a boost, sounding that lame once had been bad enough. We decided the shifts pretty quickly and worked out our security measure, namely tying ourselves to the thick branches and hoping for the best.

I was impressed as Teagan managed to mostly hide her annoyance as the buxom Hyuuga snuggled into the young man's chest shivering in what could have been a reaction due to the cold or to excitement.

I made a gesture offering the brunette a hug that was only partly mocking, we really did need the embrace to keep ourselves from freezing in the night. Still the other girl managed to glare darkly at me for a full five minutes before she gave in and we arranged ourselves quite uneasily. I got groped at least twice rather awkwardly by the brunette and vice versa before we settled into a good position my back pressed flush against her front and all our odds and ends jutting outward and not into one another's ribs.

"You tell anyone about this and I'll kick your seventy pound ass." Muttered Teagan. I hadn't realised she was the easily embarrassed type, she'd been more or less wrapped around the Uchiha this morning without any care of how it might look…and it did look suggestive.

"Your pillow talk needs work." I whispered back. I could almost feel the back of my head heating up from the intensity of her glare and wisely decided not to taunt her any further, I may have had a life line but I still didn't fancy getting thrown out of the tree.

* * *

"Lucky lucky lucky, you're a very strong girl my dear." I could hear slime dripping from his voice as he purred the words and was more than thankful that my leg was completely numb.

"Such sweet supple sensual-" he only stopped the increasingly alarming bluster as Barney slammed a large palm down on the table and gave a low growl that seemed so contrary to his natural disposition. It focused mine and the grey haired doctors attention on him so quickly I knew I at least had whiplash.

"You wanna stop scaring that girl right now Doc, or I'm gonna get real angry." Despite the waves of hostile energy that poured off the large dark man I was grateful for him. Both Garaa and Suigetsu had wandered off examining this bizarre doctor's office and the rest of the floor for anything that could be of aid but B had stayed by my side not trusting this creepy doctors altruism any more than I did.

I threw him a grateful glance and folded a hand over his tense forearm feeling comforted when his other powerful hand folded over mine. I probably shouldn't have been so surprised at the old man's protectiveness, he worked with children after all and even at seventeen that's likely what I appeared as to the large man.

"Do you have kids B?" I asked shakily as the doctor began sewing my wound shut, the leg was numb and I knew it was only my imagination that was distressing me. I needed the distraction.

"Three. A boy, Martin just a few years older than you, studying to be a journalist. And the twins Rose and Cynthia, just fourteen last month. Both quiet as mice or at least they pretend to be." He lost himself in his reminiscing easily and I joined him allowing my mind to drift away from my leg, I was brought back every now and again though as B's eyes would dart downward dark promise in his normally warm eyes as he checked the older man's work.

"All done precious." Kabuto's voice cut as he rose from my leg, as I shifted to get a better view I was surprised to see he'd done a fairly apt job. The old doctors hand smacked mine away as I reached downward.

"No scratching. And now…my payment." He hissed lowly drawing away from us and I thought the light in general. His pitch black clothing helping him to blend into the shadows leaving only the dull grey of his hair and the twinkle of his too large glasses visible to us. He was staring pointedly at B now.

"As soon as Garaa gets back I'll go." Barney's deep tone rumbled without room for argument. I was dearly pleased he left out Suigetsu, I wouldn't feel any safer in the platinum blondes company than I would alone.

Still I couldn't help realise what the deal he'd so quickly cut meant now. This doctor Kabuto had made his home on the highest level in the warehouse, and apparently he'd been here for some time having arrived with an earlier group. He'd been surviving on the supplies planted for later groups and perhaps more disturbingly he'd never tried to leave. This Kabuto had become…curious about the Undead abominations roaming the island, he'd stayed to study them. All around the room and in fact the entire floor were gruesome dissections, sketches and notes taped to the wall and sometimes simply carved into the metal when I supposed paper had been scarce. It was a creepy collection to say the least.

And in exchange for medical aid on my leg B had agreed to acquire him a fresh specimen.

"We'll all go B." I spoke with more conviction than anything else really. I found the task of raising myself off the operating table to be immeasurably challenging with the blood loss and pain killer combination. A strong hand found my shoulder and gently pushed me down before I could rise fully.

"I'll take Suigetsu with me, you need to recuperate little missy." He spoke his voice dripping with false lightness and reassurance that I desperately wanted to believe.

* * *

"I can hear it again." She whispered to me suddenly her breath puffing out in a white cloud to mingle with my own. I hadn't even realised that she was awake. Her eyes blinked open as bright and as clear as the moon hanging above us.

"The music you were humming." I whispered back tightening my grip on the woman as a chill wind passed over us. I was sorely regretting leaving our sanctuary now.

"How'd you know?" She questioned though her voice lacked surprise at the fact. I guess the shy woman had noticed as Tenten and I had that there was much more at play here than just those ghouls.

"I can hear it too, echoing in the back of my mind." I hadn't been paying it all that much attention before but I could clearly hear it now, the Hyuuga's strange jingle.

"Can I tell you something strange, like possibly crazy strange?" she asked and I thought I knew where this was heading, Hinata had seen the others in her dreams too.

"Given where we are Hinata I think crazy has become kind of common place." She actually giggled a little, I imaged more in relief than out of humour though.

"I saw my cousin in a dream, and he was here too. Traveling with some strange people, two suits and a gargantuan man." That hadn't been exactly what I was expecting to hear, I couldn't remember anybody who could fit those descriptions in my own dreams. I shifted awkwardly and slid my cell from my pocket.

"Did you see these three?" I asked flicking down to the pictures of the three we'd seen in the clearing before, the pale girl shook her head in the negative but a new curiosity burned in her bright eyes as they darted back to me.

"You've met these people?" she asked but I knew that was only the first question I'd have to answer, undoubtedly the brunette had noticed the captured tagline and that was bound to raise at least one question.

"I dreamed of them first, like you and your cousin. They were the ones firing the guns earlier." I answered a theory coming to mind as I spoke the words. Hinata seemed to follow the same brain wave but she put it into words before I could.

"So you dreamt of them and then you met them." Spoke the Hyuuga her brow furrowing noticeably even in the pale light. I could see the cause for her worries, if they were prophetic visions then they suggested that Hinata and I had divulging paths to take.

"Yeah, that seems to be the case." I was reluctant to accept the theory though at least until I spoke to Tenten about it, she'd seen the octopus man too. And what did Sakura see if she even saw anything at all, and what did it mean if we saw nothing at all.

"What happened to them, they were captured?" she followed up a few moments later drawing me from my tangled web of thoughts and back to reality. For a moment I wavered with the idea of understating the danger, trying to put her at ease but in the long run I thought that would serve her far worse.

"Something…monstrous took them. It killed anyone with a weapon and chained those who surrendered to it. Like some demonic Warden." I answered. It's how I'd come to think of it, this was a prison and that thing was the warden herding us to our cells.

"The guns didn't work on it?" her asked almost unfazed, I supposed there was a difference between seeing a creature like that in action and simply hearing of it.

"No, they were using the lightest rounds though so we're not sure." The insane man had managed to penetrate it's hide with the melee weapon, draw a small spurt of inhuman blood.

"Another bogeyman hiding in the darkness huh?" she whispered settling her head back down into the crook of my neck. That was probably a good way to look at it, just another tendril of this place's corruption nothing more grand than that.

* * *

The grated iron cut into my arm as the massive arm threw us onto the rusted lift platform, Shino didn't seem to hit the ground as roughly rolling the damage off. We kept our eyes trained on the dark figure as it lurched it's way to a rusted pulley system abandoning its hammer in favour of pulling at the ancient chains.

It seemed distracted and I felt my eyes trail towards the entrance and the pale starlight that seeped through it. Just five metres maybe, then another ten and I'd hit the tree line. I could lose this hulking monster in the canopy, the terrain would slow him down a lot.

I took a mental count of three, steeling my nerves for my play, but as I made to dash away a hand tangled itself in my shirt pulling me back down. I glanced at the owner, Shino, shaking his head slowly and then to where his eyes had focused. The creature had stilled, watching us carefully its hand drifting toward the hammer that didn't seem to be as far away now as I'd convinced myself it had been.

It would have caught me before I even got halfway to the door.

It went back to its work and the rusted engine hummed to life reluctantly rattling the chains that held our platform aloft. Slowly in jerky motions we began to descend with a horrible rattle accompanying each bounce before the mechanism found its rhythm and we drifted into the darkness.

After what felt like an entirety in the shadows and the silence we came to a stop and waited, waited until a deep rumble resounded through the still stale air and a heavy door was pulled aside spilling artificial light in on top of us. We were tugged forward painfully by our collars and as my eyes adjusted I got my first vision of another monstrosity, undoubtedly sibling to the creature that had dragged us here.

It was shorter and fatter than the one above and unfortunately lacked the armour of the other. Instead a dreadful broken face leered at us, it's lower jaw jutting out for far further than was natural accompanied by a row of jagged yellowed teeth, its nose had been forced back into itself and its eyes were twisted and yellowed. A heavy purple and blue veined gut hung before it cover in hair or fur and in its clawed crooked right hand held our chains tight.

It drew us closer slobbering from its inhuman maw.

Faster than I would have thought possible its free hand darted out its jagged nails cutting into my clothing before it tore the fabric away. It done the same to the unmoving Shino as I shrieked and covered my exposed flesh.

Moving back away it stretched a bony finger toward a pile of white clothes I hadn't seen before not too far in the distance, hesitantly I moved toward the rags. Halfway to the rags I shrieked again though as a torrent of cold water hit my bare skin. Shivering I grabbed the first clothes in hands reach. Despite the nudity though I realised Shino's eyes never drifted towards me, more proof I thought of his sociopath status.

The material was rough and itchy and was only marginally warmer than nothing at all. Our chains were yanked again before I could even fully button the starchy shirt, we were dragged further and further along the sanitary path trailing after the hideous creature. We finally came to a stop as the hall ended suddenly with an open pit.

Before I could realise what it meant or even just brace myself a powerful limb connected with my back hurling me forward. The fall was short and the floor padded but the landing still knocked the air painfully from my lungs before either Shino or my own chain came down after us whipping my back sharply.

"Shit!" I heard the sound of something soft, a key for the collar, hitting the cushioned floor as I lay in agony my shoulder jarred and my back bruised. We'd tumbled into a deeper circle of hell, I could feel misery emanating from the walls about us.

There was a click as Shino freed himself and more surprisingly a second accompanied by the feel of cold fingers on my neck as my own was also removed. I raised myself to a sitting position carefully watching the silent man as he carefully wrapped his left forearm in one of the chains locking it into place and covering them with his shirt sleeve, the other he held loosely in his hand. The black rims of his shades stared at me lifelessly as I climbed to my feet. Ignoring his spectral company I stalked along the gloomy path till it opened into a crowded room.

A low whistle sounded.

"Look at that, fresh meat. Cute too." I heard a voice ring out and several indistinct others crackle in the background. Before I could blink away the shock of the florescent lighting an arm snaked its way around my waist and another clamped onto my shoulder. Thoughts of retaliation died as the grip antagonised my injuries and my vision blurred. I felt a knee push my legs apart and hands sliding over me, one sliding up the inside of my thigh and the other roughly grabbing my chest.

As my vision returned slightly I saw a grinning face for a moment before a soft whistle broke the air and his face burst into a bloody red mist. The arms behind me unclasped and I was spun away. I watched as the second figure threw a sloppy right hook at Shino failing to connect as the man stepped inside his guard smashing his chin with an elbow before he gripped the attacking fist. There was a low crack before the man- no actually it was woman I realised, a heavy set pig faced woman- began to howl in pain clutching her now broken wrist.

Other faces stared at us blinking slowly and dumbly from the crowd as I made my way to the downed man, still clutching his face and squealing. I kicked his legs apart and brought down my heel smashing the delicate body part he'd been so eager to introduce me to.

"Cannibals." Stated my dark companion simply offering me the blood slicked chain, I accepted it pragmatism and an animalistic instinct rattling through my body as the adrenaline caused me to shake. I could see it now, their hands and their mouths were blood stained and in the crowd I could see some people, bandaged and wounded missing limbs or lumps of flesh.

There were empty food cases in the corner but hardly enough to feed this many people and especially not any that may be greedy. As the adrenaline began to wear off I felt horror and disgust settle itself in my very bones and a terrible gnawing terror seize my heart.

And Shino just leaned against a wall, apathetic and unaffected by the whole thing.

* * *

"You're squirming, stop it." I hissed to the pink haired girl in my lap, it was the second time I'd been awoken by an elbow jammed into my ribs, then the girl would quiet down and lay still for a short while before she started up again.

"The tree branch is scratching my bum." She grumbled back, the pout audible in her voice as she shifted her tiny behind again trying to find a comfortable spot. I guessed my thicker pants were offering me some protection…though it could have just been the fact that my backside had fallen asleep hours ago and was completely numb.

"Well then imagine how much worse it'll be if I shove a tree branch up there." That certainly stilled her, did she actually expect me to follow through on that threat? Granted it'd be more uncomfortable for her but it still would be unpleasant for me all the same.

"I've been having some strange dreams, two girls dying in these woods last night, and just now a man and a woman being imprisoned somewhere. They're pretty damn disturbing." The younger girl explain partly justifying her restless sleep. But what caught my attention was the description, it sounded as if Sakura had seen something different than Sasuke and I had. What did that mean?

"I've had some too, two different groups of four suffering through this ordeal as well." I spoke unsure of just how much I should reveal. That I'd confirmed at least one of the dreams as something more than our imagination at work. Something held me back though, maybe it was that she'd see something else than I had or maybe it was my so called trust issues acting up again.

"I think they mean something, hints on how to survive or warnings…just something." The girl mumbled sinking back against my chest and dozing back off. I was more awake now though, my mind racing with different theories and ideas.

I'd talk to the Uchiha come morning, check if he'd shared my dreams tonight too and I guessed place my wafer thin faith on that meaning something for us. Same dreams, that meant something, it reinforced our partnership didn't it?

* * *

"Hold still you fucking cunt!" The pale bucking body got halfway around and I glanced at her face, big bloody nose, jaw half torn away and an eye dangling from a bruised socket. I spun her back around slamming a fist onto her lower back as I pushed my way back inside her cold passage, what a fucking turn off.

I gripped her hips tight and laughed as she tried to shift around, bite me and infect me. I felt pressure building in my stomach and quickened my pace hammering her harder and harder, if I didn't know better I'd say her ghastly howls had taken a painful tone...I liked that.

I pulled out finishing on her tramp stamp but any enjoyment was destroyed as footsteps echoed down the corridor. Carefully I stepped out of range of the bound zombie bitch and levelled the barrel of my colt at the shadow cloaked figure approaching us.

"Relax, man. I'm human." A large black man clothed only in a white undershirt and pants stepped into the light a baseball bat dangling from his hand. I didn't lower my weapon but relaxed immensely.

"Whoo man, you…damn, that takes balls." Spoke the man with a whistle. I allowed a wave of satisfied pride to move through me at that. It did take a pair to do a zombie bitch, more that this cowardly guy likely had. Hesitantly he prodded the body backing away as it snarled at him.

"Oh yeah, she's a bit of a butter face eh?" I jibbed angling a kick into the pale figures ribs as the cowardly man drifted back further out of what I thought was fear. I was wrong about that.

Pain exploded from my hand as the small bones fractured beneath the force of his bat. My gun went skidding along the floor and before I could even think to react he'd snatched up the black iron and his bat hit me again forcing me against the cold wall painfully.

"The fuck you think you're doing you fuckin' nig-" a gun shot rang out exploding into the masonry just beside my face cutting me off in my insult. The man's breath came out in harsh growls as he leaned closer the muzzle of my own weapon pressing hard against the back of my neck.

"I've killed a handful of these things since I woke up in this hell hole. I keep telling myself they're not really human anymore, no soul, dangerous monsters that'll only bring decent people misery." He gave the forced whisper the gun shaking a little as I saw my chance, this asshole was a goddamn humanitarian, he wouldn't kill me.

"Now tell me, how do you differ from that goddamn description?" he hissed and I almost snarled another insult at him as the pressure lessened slightly allowing me to turn. The dirty fucker was comparing me to those corpses!

"You don't have the stones for it." His gun lowered and I knew I was right. A victorious grin was spreading over my lips as the gun went off and burning pain flared in my other hand. Through the pain I could see his sombre brown eyes staring down at me as I hit the tiled floor.

"You're right, I'm no killer. But you won't be climbing out of here with those hands, so I'll leave you to them." He muttered moving back and approaching the still bound bitch without any of his previous fear. He herded her away as I tried to blink away the tears in my eyes and form some sort of plan. There was that doctor on the top level, he could help me if I could get to him. Then I'd get that son of a bitch!

A groan and several footsteps alerted me to someone approaching, the noise, the gunshot!

Shit.

* * *

Pov's; Sakura, Tsunade, Sasuke, Temari, Tenten, Racist Zombie Rapist (couldn't really be bothered allocating him a name).

Okay that's chapter six done and dusted. I like the way it turned out to be honest, it took a while but I'm glad now I didn't rush it. You guys following the hints well enough?

A word on B's character, since obviously a bizarre Disney rapper is out of the question for any kind of serious story I decided instead to have his Naruto-verse characteristics be the personality he plays on Tv allowing for the badass papa wolf guy above. You approve?

And don't worry if Tsunade and Temari seemed a bit down trodden in this chapter, you have to fall down before you can stand up if you get me. And there will be some standing up.

Also I think I may be something of a masocist, I could have went and wrote that last part from B's point of view but no, instead I go for the edgier more disturbing route for the challenge...

R&R


	7. New Friends

Title; Lucky

Disclaimer; Nope I don't own any of the Naruto characters.

Okay so the pairing will be SasuHina in the end, but don't expect me to avoid muddying the waters a bit first. Just trust me, in the end SasuHina.

Chapter 7-

* * *

"Sleep well?" Somehow I couldn't help but think there was far more subtext and a dangerous undertone or two buried within Tenten's question that simply escaped my understanding this early in the morning.

"No…I take it you had a dream too?" I offered hoping she didn't catch the pause where I judged her expression. She didn't, or at least she didn't comment on it but just released a long shaky sigh rubbing the back of her head in an unfamiliar gesture of stress.

"Yeah that last one, that...that was fucked up." I could tell, the woman was exhausted and had clearly not been able to sleep after whatever she'd seen, but still…

"Last one, I only had one dream." I half whispered. Surprised amber eyes shot up to meet my own and I thought I heard her breath hitching even if only slightly.

"What did you see?" she asked sharply and in the sort of way that seemed to imply 'tell me or I beat it out of you'. Tenten was a sweetheart like that.

"The blonde girl, Tsunade getting her leg treated. And you?" There was more to the vision but that was enough to recognise it if she'd shared it and given the way she was nodding her head almost dejectedly now I assumed she had.

"The same, and another one...that I don't want to talk about." She answered her tone brokering no argument. That was fine by me though, we had other things to talk about anyway.

"Hinata's been having dreams too, different than ours." I mentioned as the brunette increased our pace ever so slightly putting us just a little more out of the girl's hearing range. I pretended not to notice what she was doing.

"So you two had a nice long talk about your hopes and dreams." The subtext was a little clearer with that sentence. Who knew Ten was the possessive type, though I could understand it. This place, all these creatures hungry to rip us apart, it sort of made bonding pretty damn easy.

"She brought it up and that's not the point. I think she didn't see what we saw because we're supposed to take divulging paths or maybe something more subtle like yesterday, we're supposed to meet the people we see." I explained not really caring how insane the theory sounded. I was beginning to believe there wasn't really any sane reasoning behind all this crap.

"You know how impossible that sounds, that someone actually knows where we're going and they're sending us messages in our dreams." She threw back to me with a laugh that would have sounded shrill if she hadn't muffled it slightly.

"Like an army of the Undead and some hammer wielding armored giant?" It earned me a glare but got the point across rather nicely so I decided to continue.

"Maybe it's just guess work, you said it yourself there's probably cameras hidden around us. They saw we were going to clash with that group and knew you and I would take point. Now I guess we're heading towards that other group...Or maybe the people holding us here are wizards." I couldn't think of anything to actually explain our dreams except perhaps that I'd lost my mind and all this was some wild delusion of mine…which would certainly explain why I was with a group of beautiful women.

"Sakura…she said she saw a man and a woman being imprisoned." Tenten spoke her brow tightening as she shot half a glance backwards.

"The Warden, he took a man and a woman." Did that mean Sakura was going to be captured by that thing, how could anyone predict that?

"If you're right then he's probably hunting us now, Sakura would be his priority with that rifle of hers." She made sense though it meant more than that, it also meant we'd abandon her…or we wouldn't be around when it found her.

"Swap with Hinata." I spoke suddenly…and damn if looks could kill.

"I think something's supposed to split us up, send them one way and us the other. I want to see if changing our pairings effects the dreams." I explained a little more quickly and nervously than I'd like to admit.

"And what if it happens today?" asked Tenten once more saying what she wanted to say with subtext instead of actual words.

"Then we both go towards that tower, the one B and Tsunade are in." I thought it was a solid plan but Tenten seemed reluctant and after a second I realised why.

"I'll go with Sakura actually, just in case." If Sakura really was the one in the most danger, I couldn't really ask Tenten to partner with her for this experiment. Hopefully she wouldn't think I was trying to protect her or something, I got the feeling she'd find that insulting.

"No we're better balanced if you keep away from, I mean I go with Pinkie." The usually frighteningly composed woman chewed her way through her sentence before she jogged back to make the switch. Strange woman. The confused looking Hinata skittered her way up to me and managed to put her question to me wordlessly.

"An experiment, to see if we can alter the dreams." She didn't ask any follow up questions but I answered them anyway. I was starting to get a feel for this woman, exactly how she operated at least in a group anyway. She wouldn't want to bother or try to inconvenience someone over idle curiosity, really I don't think she actually ever spoke without ensuring herself she had a justification for it. Of course one to one she was more open, even strangely cocky at times.

* * *

"So be honest, you and the kid? There's more to you right, that's why you dream about each other." Despite whispering the cherry toned woman's voice was sing song and her eyes distinctly mocking. I resisted the urge to be petty.

"We don't dream of each other, we have the same dreams." Well mostly, there was that first night…but I should be focusing on my surroundings and all the nasty creatures that could be lurking within, not vague memories of a pale candle lit body sweat slicked and…

I was doing it again.

"Avoiding the question are we Teagan?" she purred back to me smirking wolfishly. The fact that we'd no access to toothbrushes became readily apparent.

"You got something on your…well all of your teeth actually." My words led to several frantic minutes of glorious silence while the woman rubbed her teeth furiously with her finger…so much for not being petty.

"Okay now, you and Sasuke. Spill." After she'd assured herself that she was as non-disgusting as possible the wolf woman returned to her questioning green eyes bright and keen.

"We've fallen madly in love and he's proposed to me." I dead panned, it didn't get the laugh I'd hoped for or any kind of belief actually. Just a vaguely unimpressed look of mild annoyance.

"Fine we're-" I was cut off by the low groan of something ghoulish. I shushed the smaller woman but it was pointless by then, it hadn't been us that aggravated them. Up ahead in the distance Sasuke and Hinata moved the former pushing the later behind him as three bloody creatures burst from the tree line.

Somehow these three were more disgusting than the ones that had come before. They were completely nude and more than that absent any trace of skin. Blood crossed yellow eyes stared out from a horrifying peeled back face as the thing parted its lips to deliver a shrieking wail that rattled around the insides of my skull.

Then it's head exploded and through my mental fog I heard the woman beside me chamber a second shot.

"What are you doing?" I called out as the crouching woman lined up a second target, squeezing off the shot and nailing the abomination before she dignified me with a response.

"It can't get any worse after that screech can it?" She shouted shouldering the rifle and beginning a jog towards the other half of our merry band. And she was wrong, that Hunter wouldn't react to a creatures howl but it would come for a rifles resound. Sasuke it seemed thought exactly the same thing as he'd abandoned his bat carelessly a top the third skinless ghoul after caving its skull in. I dropped my own melee weapon and shot him a significant look that I hoped he understood.

"Run." It was an order, pure and simple. I took off leading the way my feet pounding furiously on the rough dirt of the track as I heard howls and groans shake the midmorning air as the forest came alive around us with a horrifying wet groan.

"There." It was Hinata that first noticed the tower looming in the distance and forced the single word out between wheezing breaths. Somehow I knew, I mean I'd never actually seen the damn thing's outside before but I knew that this was the place I'd been dreaming of. I could feel it.

So why did I feel like I was overlooking something.

* * *

"Up!" I felt the young Uchiha's hand connect roughly with my back side forcing me up onto the cool steel. Several shots rang out, from where I couldn't tell, before I felt the boys warm weight pressing down on me as he all but jumped onto the scaffolding.

"Where's-" I didn't finish my question, I couldn't as I began to cough frantically choking on the taste of rotten flesh, bile and blood that filled the room. I mimicked the Uchiha stripping away more cloth from my tattered dress to cover my mouth.

"I can't s- there, shit." I followed his gaze over the barely lit mob of starving howling corpses to where Tenten and Sakura had dashed. They'd made it onto a slightly elevated platform but it still wasn't high enough to stop the mob, rather it only delayed them. They stood stalk still though frozen in place instead of dashing to the potential safety of one of the ladders.

I pulled the Uchiha away from the scene though as the first of the creatures managed to scale its way up to us. My weapon rattled noisily wasting more ammo than I would have liked and I barely managed to hold onto it. More began to make the climb up and we were forced to move higher awkwardly climbing as a three armed pair, Sasuke kicking down whatever he could once we'd reached the decrepit walkway.

"There're splitting up?" I guessed the Uchiha's eyesight wasn't as good as mine as he sounded confused, unsure. Both women had indeed split up and it didn't take us long to realise exactly why. With a whistle and a crash a large hammer came twirling from the darkness denting the floor where the girls had been standing.

I heard the boy beside me swear.

"It's that thing isn't it?" I needn't have asked as its dark form moved from the shadows moments later, trudging almost lazily to its weapon as the lights above it flickered almost as if frightened by what passed beneath them.

Tenten's weapon began to resound with sad desperate sounding pops, of the few shots that did hit not one even seemed to so much as stun the creature as it yanked it's tremendous weapon free. In one moment it cocked it's head toward the desperate brunette and in the next it was airborne vaulting with its hammer across the gap in seconds.

It's hammer stopped just above the tall woman's head as her weapon fell from her hands. I got the feeling she was shaking, I knew I'd be. Sasuke moved beside me pulling his gun from its holster, I wondered exactly what the hell he was hoping to do with that?

A tremendous roar broke the air and I stared as the Uchiha's weapon for a moment before I realised he wasn't the one that had fired. Another shot rang out and I glimpsed Sakura high on one of the ledges rifle trained on the monster. The larger weapon was proving more devastating physically rocking the giant.

I watched as Tenten took her chance sprinting from the staggering monstrosity. She didn't get far though as a haphazard backswing of the massive hammer seemed to glance her tearing through the cement and kicking up a dust cloud. The creature finally made a noise, a low guttural battle cry as it thundered toward Sakura shifting out of the path of another shot.

"Oh God." It's hammer cut a vicious arc through the air tearing the platform out from beneath Sakura. I watched as her limp form hit the ground roughly the rifle clattering away abandoned as the beast plucked the unconscious woman free of the rubble, collared her and turned it's attentions to us.

I felt Sasuke's hand push me hard as I began to form a warning. A low whistle cut the air before the hammer crashed through the walkway tearing it into two. The floor began to disappear beneath me and I forced my fingers into the steel slits gripping it tight as the platform fell away.

The jerked sudden stop almost tore my fingers from their sockets and it was only by strength of will that I managed to pull myself up ignoring the searing pain in my wrist and knuckles. I glanced back to find the Uchiha safe a top the other side of the now bisected walkway.

"Go up!" He shouted accompanied by hand gestures before turning to find his own way, his revolver I noticed clenched in one hand. I drew my own weapon barely able to hold it with my abused hands and turned to the task before me moving swiftly before the black clad beast below could find a way up to us.

Now then, up. Why did I get the feeling that sounded a lot easier than it was going to be.

* * *

Icy water woke up.

No, that seems too gentle a way to put it actually, rather I was shocked awake by the icy torrent of a shower operated by a monstrosity that looked like a tarantula, an ape and horseshit all got plastered one night and had an ugly lovechild together. The thing was quick to tear at my clothing shredding the cloth and dumping it in tatters at my feet.

Too disorientated to correctly cower in fear I grabbed at the pile taking in into my arms and earning myself an angered wail from the increasingly familiar creature, but it didn't seem to care all that much pushing me along to the pile of white clothing. I pulled on the clothes careful to double up the starchy itchy material without notice and followed the creature obediently to the pit my mind somehow both working on overdrive and too shaken to think fully.

The shove still managed to catch my sluggish mind by surprise but the fall hurt just as much as I'd expected it to, which was to say a lot. It was aided though by the pile of cloth I still clutched and the small iron device with in that had went unnoticed to both my captures.

I pulled the tiny pistol free and checked it over relieved beyond belief to find it still functional. I knew exactly what kind of surprise awaited me and just how I'd fair against it. The woman I'd seen had been more imposing than I was and seemed the physical type and she'd been pinned in seconds by the savages that haunted this place. Without this gun there was no doubt I'd be…suffering something I couldn't let myself think about.

I wondered if she were still here or had such a fate taken her.

No crowd awaited me as I pushed forward and that unnerved me all the more. There was nobody but signs of people everywhere as I stepped carefully deeper and deeper into the white walled hell. Eventually I began to hear the voices, the chanting, the shouting, the cheering.

The room I came to was different than the others, no padded asylum walls just bare stone, mortar, concrete and iron chains in the corners. And a ring of men and women topless gathered to watch some spectacle. As I got close enough to see I saw the flashes of crimson speckle through the air and the old stains lining the floor.

Two men blood soaked and sweaty pounded one another in combat that seemed completely bestial and inhuman, bruises and contusions coloured them and yet they continued to struggle with one another.

"You new?" The voice startled me and I almost drew my gun on the blonde that posed the question. It was the woman from my dreams and I realised quiet quickly I'd underestimated her actual height as I got a full unavoidable view of her…assets. As tall as Sasuke and as busty as Hinata…how on earth was I feeling jealous now of all times.

"Um why are you..?" I thought the question was obvious but more than that there were too many questions that needed to be asked and I had no idea which one should come first.

"The food gets dropped in today, they're fighting to see who gets access. The lack of shirts is sort of an honoured agreement, no concealed weapons." I could pick out the few bruises marring the woman's tanned perfection now but somehow I doubted she'd been the loser. Whatever question I was going to ask next died as the crowd suddenly moved into overdrive and Temari swore.

One of the men staggered backward hands shaky from something more than blood-loss as he stared at the lifeless body of the other man horror more than guilt written on his deformed features.

"That against the honour agreement too, or it mean he's the winner." My wit seemed to fall on deaf ears though as Temari shook her head mutely pulling me back with the expanding crowd as the newly blooded killer began to crawl toward us hands outstreched. He didn't make it though, a deformed hand wrapping around his ankle as the demon that guarded this place appeared slobbering over the man as he pulled him close.

"Strictly no killing here, you kill and…" she didn't need to finish as it began, the monster's other hand closed over the man's thigh and it twisted snapping the bone like it were a twig before it moved onto the next leg breaking it with equal glee as the man howled and sobbed brokenly. I thought that would be the end of it, or almost at least, that he'd be killed soon but I was wrong. The creature dragged him to the chains in the corner and I watched unable to break contact from the gruesome scene as it tightened the chains around the man's arms hoisting him up onto his broken legs.

"If you're lucky he hangs you upside down." I was going to ask why but that too became all too obvious as the beast unsheathed the knife at its waist, dull and rusty, to saw a thin slab of meat from the man's torso. He was livestock, a living source of food to be fed off slowly until he died, hung upside down that end would come much quicker like this...

I only realised we were the only ones still in the room as the doomed man began to howl for help as Temari dragged me away.

"Now Sakura, tell me am I crazy or do you know who I am as well?"

* * *

Though I'd never talk about it I'd woken up in a few uncomfortable situations in my time. When I'd snuck out drinking at fifteen and decorated one of my mother's prized hats with a layer of vomit. I'd woken up in bed with a stranger more than once in college. Waking up after a relapse with a boyfriend I should have forgotten years ago. There were plenty.

This took the proverbial cake.

My body ached like it never had before and I felt sluggish like a bubble had been placed over my head distorting both sight and sound. What got me most though was where exactly I was, rather than buried under broken concrete and collapsed scaffolding I lay astride a make shift bed of ragged sheets and blankets.

As I shifted for a better look at the room I noticed at last that I was not alone. The cause I assumed of how I got here sat in the corner of the room a pale rat faced man crouching, his pale blue eyes watching me unblinkingly as he fiddled with the small gleaming knife in his bandaged hands…somehow all this gave me a bad feeling.

I opened my mouth to speak- exactly what I was to say I don't know, thank him for seemingly rescuing me or ask why my limbs were bound. Whatever it was to be I didn't get the chance as he crossed the distance in jerky quick steps and stuck me hard across the cheek with the base of the knife.

The force sent me off the pseudo bedding and I hit the dusty concrete with a wheezing pained gasp. I felt hands on me twisting me around, pulling my legs up onto a shoulder and clawing at my pants viciously. As I opened my mouth to scream, shout anything I felt crooked finger push a filthy oily tasting cloth into my mouth muffling my screams before another blow of the knife hilt silenced me. I heard him swearing beneath his breath before the zip came loose and my pant and underwear begun to slip from my hips.

I felt something hard and pulsing press the skin of my bare behind as the man pulled my legs higher for better access and something snapped in me. Wildly I began to trash and buck throwing myself off his shoulder getting a few feet of distance but before I could move further a booted foot caught my ribs painfully turning me over onto my back.

Sucking at his lower lip and looking pleased with the turn of events he towered over me leaning down to continue. That was a mistake. With every ounce of force I could possibly muster and then some I snaked both feet up in a vicious kick between the scum's legs. I was close enough to see his eyes water and more disgustingly feel the specks of spittle hit my cheeks as his mouth parted in a silent howl and he doubled over.

I trashed again desperation pushing me past any sense of a limit and hammered my skull into his nose. Trashing and kicking and head-butting I forced him onto his back and then forced the knife from his weak broken hands. I pinned him beneath my thighs and in a split second realised I'd seen this man before, seen him shot and abandoned to the ghouls by B.

I drove the knife down hard into his sternum, twisting it as he began to spasm and kick beneath me and hurl his final howled insults, whore, bitch, tramp. I didn't hear them, not really. All I could feel was the sticky blood coating my hands now, not a ghouls this time, a living breathing man's blood. And there was the feel of my clothing, the elastic of my underwear biting into my thighs nearly halfway down.

I threw up.

And I think I cried, I can't remember much more than imploding shaking and wishing a hundred thousand things had been different. That's how he found me I think, curled up next to a dead man in a pool that was equal parts blood vomit and my own goddamned tears.

* * *

So…what do you think? You know besides that I may need urgent psychological aid. Just had to put a physical end to old RZR myself, implied death seemed too good for him.

And sorry, forgot to put the Pov's in the first time. Sasuke, Tenten, Hinata, Sakura, Tenten.

Also gonna take a chance to answer some questions and such cause I've been a little neglectful of that aspect. So…

**RinDey- **I don't think it's too much of a spoiler to say Orochimaru is most definitely an evil force at work on the island, but exactly how so remains to be seen. Well I'm a subverting pretences kind of guy so maybe B's got a chance.

**Justsomenobody**- That's exactly what I was hoping to do with B, happy to hear you're still enjoying the story.

**Manga Aficionado- **Thanks for leaving a review, hope you continue to enjoy silently or otherwise. Yes raping a zombie is wrong on too many levels to count, and a truly disturbing thing to write, which is exactly why it's in the story …I need help :/.

R&R


	8. Shared Showers

Title; Lucky

Disclaimer; Nope I don't own any of the Naruto characters.

Okay so the pairing will be SasuHina in the end, but don't expect me to avoid muddying the waters a bit first. Just trust me, in the end SasuHina.

Chapter 8-

* * *

Whatever I'd thought of fear before, it was nothing compared to the beast that stalked my mind now so completely alone. Each and every shadow seemed to contain a writhing mess of death to my wandering eye and every moan or creak of the building rattled my nerves further, and there were a lot of them. The building was poorly built at best and the icy wind whistled through gaps and tears in its iron structure chilling me as it howled and cried.

It couldn't have been much more than an hour ago I left Sasuke, inching my way through the dark corridors in search of some way up. But it felt as if an eternity had passed, and I'd used up all my corridors.

The only staircase looked to have been stripped almost torn away and I'd had no luck finding a fire escape or somewhere more climbable which left only one course of action open. Searching the rooms. I was hesitant though, no, more than hesitant. Blood stains coated the walls and lay in puddles here and there and all I could think was that whatever it had been that caused them was still lurking here somewhere.

Gun at the ready in inexperienced bruised hands I pushed the first door open scanning the darkness with a panicked fervour. Nothing, or nothing alive anyway and no leaked blood around the room. The room was Spartan, decorated only by rows of bunk beds and heavy cases. A quick search revealed the cases held nothing but military fatigues absent crests or flags or any revealing markers and the occasional helmet or two. I took a helmet and one of the uniform coats. I couldn't think of any possible advantage jungle camouflage would give me at the moment but it helped battle the chill a little at least.

Somehow I was more nervous coming to the second door, perhaps because I knew at least one held danger and the odds of picking that door had just increased. Playing Russian roulette with myself huh, what a way to go.

I twisted the handle and pushed but to little effect but a slight shake, the door wasn't locked but it was barricaded from within. I heard something, scratchy for lack of a better word, moving about through the gap. Weary of turning my back to the suspicious door I tried the one next to it finding it opened easily.

A flickering light blinded me for a second and in reflex I fired, my gun rattling furiously until it clicked empty. As my vision returned I was greeted to an empty room, a couch and some other odd things across from me riddled with the last of my clip. Clumsily I slid the empty metal free and replaced it with my second and as it were last clip.

The room seemed to be a common area. An old common area, kind that would have seemed retro in the nineteen fifties. An old record player lay gathering dust in one corner and in a move that dictated either brilliance or insanity I decided to play detective and put it on play. There was nothing but brittle dead air for a moment before a voice came on high and airy but distinctly male.

"Project report two hundred and fifty um…oh I forget. The last of the survivors have been imprisoned by that titan yet again and I find myself once more without aids or resources for my research. Certainly it would appear either he is becoming more skilful or rather the society is becoming more complacent in whom they select." I heard nothing for a few moments save grunts and hums that seemed to be in the affirmative, as if someone else were there talking to him.

"Yes I do see your point. I must began to take measures against the Warden lest he spoil all my fun. One of the failures should suffice, after all he should only be weakened not outright destroyed. I wouldn't want to see him replaced." The voice continued to tut to itself before it divulged into scientific jargon, chemical compositions and such for whatever experiment it had just performed. I shut off the recorder ignoring the feel of slime the voice had brought with it to the room.

I didn't really know what to make of all that except that whomever it was hadn't done a good job in taking his measures against the Warden. But who was he, he didn't seem to be one of our captors but he'd referenced them as a society of some sort. And what exactly had he been creating?

More questions now than answers my eyes picked out something in the back corner of the room, a small window that seemed to lead to the next room, the barricaded room. I examined it carefully and decided on a course for action, the window was clearly designed for food or other small items to be passed through and I doubted even I would be getting through it without some time and effort squeezing my way painfully.

If something dangerous was in the room this was my chance to get a drop on it with cover.

The rusted latch opened easily enough but not without a fair amount of noise and I heard the thing shuffling and scratching as the window slid open. I blinked in the low light picking out first the blood smears and then the body. Barely alive the man's pain creased features took me in with a look of confusion, undoubtedly he hadn't been expecting a young woman garbed in a torn bridesmaid dress and too large military fatigues.

I wasted no time beginning but it still took me almost five minutes to bend and shift through the tight passage and get to the man's aid. I pulled his hand and the rag he held away from his chest revealing three near parallel cuts running along the flesh leaking blood in a slow steady stream, from each wound pale purple and black lines snaked outward signs of some infection I supposed.

"Hey, what's a…what's a pretty thing like you doing here?" His voice was cracked and dry but he forced the line out between coughs. I glanced around the bare kitchen picking out a tap and moved to get him a drink. A hand caught my wrist before I could get far though.

"Water's bad, bad in this whole place. I'm Nagato by the way." He tried for what I guessed was to be a flirty smile but it came out as more of a grimace. I helped him get the rag back on his wound and instead fished my water bottle from my pack.

"I'm ah, Hinata." It felt awkward introducing myself to a man that seemed to be on the cusp of death, he pushed away the offered water with a weak shake of his head.

"Don't, you'll need that Hinata. Listen to me okay." His hand half flopped onto my shoulder and for the first time I noticed that the man's eyes, pain stricken as they were, were nothing short of beautiful. A poets eyes I thought.

"Listen there's a…a thing loose here. Real dangerous." He began, focus dropping here and there as his wound and dry throat aggravated him.

"I know the giant, the Warden, he was on the ground floor but he's gone now." I tried to forget that he'd taken Sakura with him. It was horrifying knowing I'd abandoned her and terrifying knowing there was literally no other choice. The man, Nagato, groaned and shook his head.

"No not a giant, smaller, lizard fucking insect man." That was not reassuring.

"What do you mean, Nagato, was this the thing that hurt you?" Now that I thought of it nether the zombies nor the Warden could inflict a wound like this one. Whatever had done it must have been clawed and faster than the average ghoul.

"Yes. Listen he's, it's got claws big talon things. And its skin's hard, armoured, like its bones are on the outside. But its eyes are bad, delicate. It hates the light. Here." The image he conjured was nothing but worrying and I tried to control my imagination as he pushed a dark metal object towards me.

"Flares. A few doors down there should be a security office, there's vent access in there. Get out of here…pretty miss Hinata." I accepted the odd shaped flare gun and the two spare shots the man offered me.

"I've got a friend here, I'm gonna come back here once I find him alright." I didn't even believe myself, not because I wouldn't come back but because I could already see this man's fate. He'd lost too much blood and that wound was definitely infected and with something I'd wager no doctor in the real world was experienced with.

A little hesitantly I left him squeezing back out through the window and shutting it behind me pushing the ragged couch against the passage in a barricade that looked as rushed and sloppy as it was. Despite what he'd told me though I now felt a little less nervous knowing there was another person up here and that creature was likely long gone too. If I wasn't assuming too much then it was the creation that voice had spoken of, the one released to inconvenience the Warden.

I found the door marked with an almost completely faded 'S'. The old wood creaked as I pushed the door open and reflexively I clicked the lock shut behind me. A wall of monitors took up most of the left wall at least half of them broken or linked to broken cameras. They were organised by floors I noticed with all the lower screens showing hordes of the Undead and the top row was almost completely offline bar an empty hallway or dorm room. On the mid-levels though I was quick to pick out the Uchiha descending to the second floor I didn't doubt in search of his brunette partner, what an impression that girl had made on him to warrant such a brave and stupid move. Another on the third floor showed Nagato still clearly alive and for the moment safe.

I saw the vent access quickly enough and as I pulled a nearby desk to aid in my climb I made another discovery. Attached beneath the desk was a slick dark riot shotgun oiled and ready for use, I found a dozen slugs boxed in the desk drawer and loaded half into the weapon and pocketed the spares before shouldering the weapon. I wasn't too keen to use it unless I had too. I'd fired one before when I'd been dragged to a firing range by my sister and her sociopath boyfriend for her birthday and it hadn't been a pleasant experience.

Just as I'd managed to remove the vent cover a noise from the monitor startled me. I approached the crackling screen and bit back my repulsion as I saw the source of the sounds. Crouched on all fours a human sized figure scuttled though the corridors pausing at each blood spear for a moment before it finally reached Nagato's room.

Without any apparent effort it tore the door from its hinges, half shredding the sturdy wood with its claws and with as little effort it tore through the rest of the barricade in seconds. Nagato didn't stand a chance, in seconds the creature was upon him savaging him with a high wail that smothered his own shriek. As he pulled back I saw what remained of the pained man, his face and arms had been untouched but his chest was completely hollowed out.

The things face was a twisted parody of a man's with fangs and pincers bursting from its distorted jaw. It was silent for a second before the sickly yellow eyes blinked and focused on the camera staring right back at me. It began to wail again and I rushed to the vent forgetting any notions of making a barricade or trying to fight such a thing.

I made it into the vent pulling the grate back up and freezing as the door came apart and the monstrosity entered the room. It sniffed around for a few minutes I guessed confused as to where I'd went before a bright flash on one of the monitors set it off. Viciously it began to tear into the screens wailing in fury.

I used the noisy chance to crawl away hoping it wouldn't realise just how to follow me.

* * *

I began to realise pretty quickly that there wasn't much in the way of shame or privacy down here. The prisoners were quick to relieve themselves without much care of who might be watching and more than once already I'd seen a woman or even a man mounted and screwed quite publicly without anyone blinking an eye.

And somehow Temari was not the one I was connecting with.

"It's the food I believe, drugged." Shino the quiet man mentioned when I brought up the subject, apparently Temari had been quicker to eat than the reluctant man and she'd already grown more feral.

"You sure it's not just people." I'll admit that I was only playing the devil's advocate at this point, most of these people had regressed beyond any kind of humanity and they had to have been helped there. It made sense that way, you take anger, frustration and survival instincts some of the strongest human triggers and you fuck around with the brain chemistry a little to help them reach insanity that much quicker.

"I've seen enough evil to know it when I see it. This isn't evil, it's a by-product of evil actions by evil men." Answered the man solemnly. I could see that, these shadows of men and women weren't evil in themselves but rather subjects, slaves, creations of it.

"And what makes you so resilient to it?" I asked ignoring the grumble of my stomach as the feral blonde approached us some tasteless dried meat in her hand, I refused the offered piece.

"They know they shouldn't be here." I raised an eyebrow at the odd answer but Temari decided to put it in much clearer if ever so slightly unpleasant terms.

"This son of a bitch deserves here." She spat, actually physically spat on the dark man before marching away to do who knows what. I kept the eyebrow raised.

"I am a man of evil deeds and evil actions miss Sakura. I've always expected to end up in hell so for me, there is no frustration, no anger, no surprise." And no self-righteous anger or self-pity to be manipulated. I decided to be careful how I asked further questions, if he was a serial killer playing the part of ally I had no intention of convincing him to do otherwise.

"She means something to you though. I saw…in my dream, you protecting her." I spoke, I'd remembered it quite clearly that he'd stepped in. Not something I thought evil men made a habit of doing for people that hated them so it had to mean something more.

"When I was eighteen I received a promotion, from car jack to hit man. The first man I killed was a writer, divorced for loving his career more than his wife. One of those martyr type investigating some people that really didn't want to be investigated." I had a feeling I knew where this was going. The tone in the man's voice told so much more than his words especially given he'd hadn't spoken in anything but a flat tone before now.

"I strangled him in his kitchen one morning, let his face flop into a bowl of some sugary cereal and looked up to realise his daughter was staying with him that weekend. She'd walked in to see her father's last breath gasping moments." My eyes flickered to the blonde across the room and he seemed to take it as a question.

"No, she just resembles the girl, or what she might have looked like now. Temari hates me for an entirely different reason." I didn't miss what was implied by the sentence and shivered at the thought that despite all his manners and sanity compared to everyone else in this pit he was probably the worst one.

"You're right you do belong down here." I found myself whispering leaning back against the padded wall my plans of escape dying away, I'd hoped to turn these two into allies and find a way out but with Temari becoming indoctrinated and the truth of Shino revealed…I wasn't sure I had a play that didn't start and end with turning my smuggled gun on myself to make the process quick and relatively painless.

"But neither of you do. I'll free you on condition that you take Temari, I don't believe this place has bound her completely yet." I wasn't sure what else to do except nod and accept the deal. Did I believe he could release us, not a chance, but damn it all to hell if I was going easily.

* * *

"Shit, fucking." She continued to swear for a couple of minute as the cold water drenched us through our clothing but eventually she calmed and buried her head in my shoulder shivering and clinging to me. I shut the water off once I was certain we'd both been washed free of the blood and vomit.

"Ten…" I couldn't think of a damn thing that made any sense to say in this moment, wow that was a close one huh, sorry 'bout the near rape. My mouth felt like sand paper and I settled for abandoning my voice instead clinging back to the woman hoping somehow if we held tight enough we'd smoother the pain and horror.

"Sasuke…give me a gun." I did with more than a fair share of hesitance, she didn't seem to catch it just accepted the cold steel and gripped it behind my back tightly.

"He, he tried to…" she began but I shushed her. It didn't need to be said, or maybe it did I had no idea what to do or how to help.

"I killed him Sasuke, I killed him, I…" her voice was hollow, she was speaking from somewhere far far away.

"I know, you stopped him." My first stumble, or the first one she'd point out as her grip suddenly broke and she shook her head furiously brown eyes puffy and swollen.

"I killed a man Sasuke. I'm a goddamn murder, I've been killing people for days now. Fucking enjoying it. I enjoyed it. Fucking sick, it's no wonder I…" she cut off and I wrapped her gently back into an embrace as she started to sob again. Self-blame, she thought…

"You're not a murderer Teagan not even close. You're doing what anyone would do, what I'd do. I wish I could kill that son of a bitch again for…that wasn't a man, even less so than those ghouls are." We were silent then for a long time as we just held each other. I wasn't going to fool myself into thinking Tenten would get over this any time soon but as she finally pulled away snapping the action on the pistol and tucking it into her waist band I saw I'd clearly been underestimating her inner resolve.

"I want them, whoever put us here, caused all this shit. I want them strung up and torn apart." She'd fallen back on anger, and a desire for vengeance. It mightn't have been healthy but at least I could see something of the woman returning to her eyes, replacing the horror and desperation that had filled them so completely when I'd found her sobbing in that room.

* * *

Pov's. Hinata, Sakura, Sasuke.

Well she'll probably need a couple of decades of therapy if she makes it from the island but for now at least she's holding herself together with anger and a burning desire for revenge as her coping mechanism. Don't you know a stories dark when revenge is portrayed in a positive light. Screw it, I don't like how preachy the manga gets about revenge being the root of all evil anyway, if I wanted to learn about Gandi's ideals I wouldn't be reading about bloody ninja.

Sakura's still in a den of Vipers and as it were has only a King Cobra to help her and Hinata's part I really enjoyed writing, given she's the least action orientated of the four I haven't been able to give her the attention she deserved with them all together safe and sound…well maybe not safe…or particularly sound but still.

So how do you think Tenten's going to greet B, all things considered. And just what is Kabuto up to let alone his royal evilness Orochimaru. And the hammer wielding Warden, he's on the prowl again as is the newly introduced…honestly I've no idea what to call it, man-spider?

**JokerAtWork-** All things come to an end, the horror will too...eventually.

**Artemis Of The Golden Distaff**- Yes it was Tenten sorry for not posting the Povs.

Anyway do enjoy.

R&R


	9. Snakes and Ladders

Title; Lucky

Disclaimer; Nope I don't own any of the Naruto characters.

Okay so the pairing will be SasuHina in the end, but don't expect me to avoid muddying the waters a bit first. Just trust me, in the end SasuHina.

Chapter 9-

* * *

"What happened to the others?" I realised with a start that I'd completely forgotten about the others or written them off as dead the second I'd seen the Uchiha alone. His dark eyes shifted nervously and I wondered just what had happened exactly after I'd lost consciousness.

"Hinata and I were split up, she should be making her way higher now. Sakura…" he didn't need to say it, from once we'd made our guess on the dream's effects we'd expected this.

"So we go get her." I felt the words tumble out thick with emotion and intent but lacking dearly in conviction. I was distinctly aware of a pit deep in the centre of my gut, a black hole that threatened to overwhelm and implode me. I took a shaky breath and repeated myself more solidly.

"Yeah, first things first though." I couldn't tell if he was humouring me or honestly agreed with the plan but he drew my attention to the more immediate problem. We'd searched around this floor but there seemed to be no way up, the way that Sasuke had coming being one way or at least he'd thought so.

"You still have your rope?" He withdrew the rope from his pack I noticed pausing a moment as his hand found his cell.

"We'll check it once we're safe." He nodded and handed me the rope. The climb was going to be a tough one, there wasn't exactly anything to use as an aid except the Uchiha. Where once we might have thrown a teasing comment or two we now worked in silence until I was astride the man's shoulders and still maybe a foot away from reaching the platform.

"Get close to the wall." He did, albeit with some difficulty as we swayed awkwardly. It only got worse as I re-angled myself to get a foot on his shoulder and raised myself up on the shaky support. As my chest hit the platform and I pulled myself up I heard a groan. Or rather a wave of groans echo through the air drawing closer.

Fear-fuelled reflex had my pistol in my hand in seconds and I quickly scanned the corridor finding it empty to my confusion. Then a shot rang out below.

I didn't waste time rushing to check on my companion, it was self-evident what was happening, but quickly found the most secure item I could and tied off the rope shouting off an order to climb to the younger surviver.

I met him half way as he scaled the climb in a way only fear and horror could have sped. Hooking my arms beneath his armpits I all but dragged him the rest of the way over the edge ignoring the howls from below or the mass of hands that had almost swallowed the man in my arms.

Our faces were close now. I could feel a loose strand of his messy black hair poke my forehead, I could see his eyes widened and still frightened and I could all but hear his heart beating threatening to explode in his chest…or maybe that was mine.

I kissed him. Forcefully and with the same desperate abandon I seemed to do everything with these days. I claimed his lips clasping a hand over the back of his neck to hold him tight. His lips were chapped, as most as bad as my own and his breath could have been fresher but that was alright.

"Ten…" frightened dark eyes blinked at me confusion and hesitance brightest among the emotions swirling within. That wasn't surprising and I had no real way of reassuring him this made any kind of sense, so I kissed him again.

"This is what I want school boy, what do you want?" I wouldn't lie and say I thought it was a good idea to get more attached, and I didn't know that this didn't have something to do with fear or some other emotion created from all we'd been through on this island. But I honestly just didn't give a good god damn, I'd felt draw to this boy since I'd seen him and now I needed to feel him to ensure he was still real, still breathing and above all else mine.

Slowly after a silence that lasted much too long he pressed a hand against my cheek, tilted his head slightly and kissed me back.

That was a good answer I thought.

* * *

The first things that came to me were the taste of copper in my mouth and the feel of cool steel against my back. It didn't take long for me to realise that something was binding my arms, legs and neck. With a groan I forced my eyes open hearing a rumbling laugh from what felt like a world away.

Bright florescent light stung my eyes and sent something rattling through my skull that tore a path of pain I wouldn't forget soon. The bright table was shiny and I could just glance the leather binding my wrists. As I began to twist in place hoping to find a way of loosening the binds or at least better checking my location I felt a hand wrap itself in my hair and yank backwards smashing my skull hard against the cold steel.

"Gentle, monster, gentle." The voice airy and familiar was accompanied by the light clap of expensive shoes as the elderly man Orochimaru emerged from the shadows, a bright scalpel twirling casually between his fingers. A groan from behind me announced that the monster had heard, though whether he would follow the command remained to be seen.

As the old man got closer I felt my panic increase as I took in the horror of his ragged face. His skin had turned a sickly yellow and reeked of rot and sickness, in large patches as big quarters the sickly skin had fallen away revealing pulsing red flesh criss-crossed with swollen purple veins barely clinging to the bone. If he noticed my disgust he ignored it well.

"Comfortable?" he hummed voice thick and wet as if he were talking with his mouth full of wet cement.

"W-what's going on?" I asked cringing in pain as the hand fisted in my hair yanked back harder, only a hard look from the dying man before me stopped the pressure.

"Well my dare Neji you see the time has come for me to…well how should I say, move on. And as no other suitors have presented themselves you are my only choice." The explanation told me nothing, not a damn thing but it frightened me. It terrified some small animal instinct in me that told me whatever he meant, it was worse than death, much worse.

The knife glinted as he raised it cutting open my jeans front. One hand raised the knife high to ghost near my eyes as revoltingly I felt his other hand push aside fabric and reach to…

"Dear God." I whispered shaking and trying to struggle again as his hand, slimy and tattered hand began to explore the contents of my jeans leaving no inch of skin unfelt. A sharp tug brought my head back to the steel and stilled my struggles as the hand took a tight grip.

"Very promising Neji, very." He hissed pulling his hand free and raising it with obviously sadistic pleasure to wipe a stray tear from my cheek, when had I began to cry?

"Prep him Juugo, and be gentle."

* * *

I awoke with a start, my cousin's desperate shout still echoing in my mind. The heat was still sweltering and I began to pull off my dress for fear of passing out again in the heat. It occurred to me that at any other time in my life the idea of running about in a pair of shorts and a push-up bra would have sent alarm bells ringing but I was too worried now.

Had that vision been in real time, was I seeing the future or the past. If I was destined to meet with Neji again would I be in time to stop those monsters from…god I didn't even want to think of how I could find the man that was a brother to me if I didn't get to him in time.

The air ducts hadn't offered me much of a choice and after a while I realised I really only could go down. The fall had been nerve wrecking as had this whole new maze I found myself in. I'd fallen into some sub-basement ominously quiet and hot enough to sear my skin.

I stalked the stone corridors as quietly as possible having now abandoned anything decidedly unnecessary. I'd looped my rope over a shoulder with my new shotgun, tightened my army jacket around my waist and kept the machine pistol firmly in hand. I'd left the remains of my dress and the food rations I couldn't eat behind me. I'd considered abandoning the useless till now body armour but reconsidered, it hadn't been any use against the zombie plague but the men holding Neji were much more likely to be carrying weapons.

Noise ahead caught my attention and I slowed my pace coming to a light ahead. Small openings scalding with dry air revealed a workforce below, creatures unlike those that stalked the island worked fuelling furnaces and at small benches. They were better maintained than those above, fearsome looking even as each of them looked to be a massive bloated strong man, their deathly pale skin swollen with powerful muscle. I managed to glance at the nearest creatures face and fought the urge to vomit, its jaw had been sewn shut messily in some countermeasure and their eyes were a bright orange reflecting the fires they maintained. Small canisters lined their belts connected to their arms my drips, I guessed it must have been what was maintaining them.

I kept low and crept past them, whatever they were doing I was happy leaving them to it. I could start trying to put together all this madness again after I got Neji out of those monsters grip. An in human beastial wailing far off told me that prehaps I should worry about myself first, the Hunter had followed me down.

* * *

As soon as the guns were lowered with all the grace of a wildcat Tenten crossed the distance and struck the centre man, B. Most of us were simply stunned but the doctor Kabuto released a small bark of laughter. What was more surprising than anything though was that the man took it without complaint waving his companions back as they moved forward to confront the brunette.

"Next time you…" She didn't seem to know how to finish her sentence as she took a few shaky steps back toward me breathing hard and angry as B nodded his understanding.

"We've been expecting you, can we talk?" Introductions seemed unnecessary, or perhaps awkward after we'd already come to blows. But B offered a hand to shake anyway gesturing to a small alcove to speak alone with Tenten, apparently the assumed leader of our group…or actually just me for the moment.

Kabuto skulked away murmuring under his breath vaguely and insanely about needing to feed the pets soon and the youngest members of the group pulled me aside absent the quiet red head.

"So how's things out there." Began the blonde girl Tsunade with some awkwardness as the man Suigetsu rooted around in one of the presses humming some strange tune I didn't recognise but was certain was off key.

"Sort of like a horror movie and a snuff movie hooking up on Halloween." I got a laugh from the man in the press but the blonde girl looked more confused, though I hoped mostly unaware of what a snuff movie was. Suigetsu soon pulled his dyed head free from the cabinet a bottle of scotch grasped firmly in hand.

"For a creepy doctor he's got good taste." We took swigs each loosening up as we talked hesitantly at first and more loosely after the alcohol began to work its magic.

"Any of you know each other?" I asked curiosity pushing me again to attempt to unravel the mystery that had so far only given me powerful migraines. The wobbly Tsunade shook her head in the negative but it seemed Suigetsu wasn't such an empty lead.

"Sure, who hasn't seen the Octo-pussies Tv show." His sentence earned a glare from the blonde and I was sure I at least looked mildly annoyed. He clicked his tongue and giggled a little to himself glassy eyed.

"Oh but I've seen the princess here too, she scores her weed from a dealer on my corner." The young woman was outraged and spluttered indignantly but the lie wouldn't have fooled anyone and only earned a sneer from her comrade before she abandoned it.

"Then there's old red, know him real well." He hummed in what was most clearly an inside joke before he realised that neither of us got it and decided to elaborate…I sort of wish he hadn't.

"I should explain. I trade sex for money, Red's a way way in the closet gay man who's terrified of daddy and makes use of my shady but discreet services." Tsunade was bright red and spluttered pulling the bottle to her for another mouthful earning a chuckle from the prostitute. I was drinking with an underage stoner and a 'discreet' prostitute…how the mighty had fallen.

"Why so curious anyway sweetheart?" asked the man crossing his legs. There was a distinctly playful curve to his eyes that told me he was messing with me, pushing random buttons to see if he'd get a reaction, not a bad way to get the measure of me I supposed.

"Shouldn't it be obvious, we can't have been chosen by accident. Each connection's a hint, were any of the others you began with familiar…or related to that corner." Some connections I'd found, so far I had my mother who connected Tenten, Hinata and I at points in our childhood and this inner city corner that connected Garaa, Suigetsu and Tsunade though illegal activities.

"No, besides there's not a lot of good it'll do you getting off this island." He wasn't wrong, even if I figured out who'd been responsible, it wouldn't help me find a solution.

"Um…do you work out a lot?" came the question after a few moments sober silence drawing baffled looks from Suigetsu and I as the blonde giggled and reached to touch my arm…missing by a fairly large margin.

In hindsight maybe the scotch had been a poor idea.

* * *

"Hinata's still somewhere in this tower, the cell confirms she's not been captured or killed." Well Sasuke's did, I'd lost mine along with the rest of my gear. The older man seemed pained at the mention, I guessed keenly aware of just how chaotic it was down there. I went on since he didn't seem all that curious.

"How much do you trust that doctor? From the little I've seen…" I trailed off, the grizzly projects and dissections that hung from every room's walls would be enough to give me nightmares for a lifetime to come even if I hadn't already been disturbed by this island.

"I don't trust him at all, Kabuto's disturbed and ruthless in equal measure. I'd get out of here but Tsunade's leg is still pretty weak and the other two are almost comfortable." Fair reasons I supposed, but I wouldn't be waiting around for them. The Uchiha was enough company for me right now and I had others to find.

"What is it he's working on exactly?" With the exception of trying to patent the market on creepy I didn't see where the mad man's research was supposed to lead. I doubted there was a cure any better than a bullet to the brain. These things were so damaged that without their disease they wouldn't survive. The only thing that made sense was weaponry, he wanted to turn them into more dependable weaponry.

"Understanding them, ask him and he'll go off in long tangents peppered with insults that you'd need a dictionary to understand. But I figure his interest in them is academic." B answered resting his chin on his fingers, that didn't seem unlikely though it raised some other questions.

"You think he's connected then, to whomever put all this in motion." I could see my question was the first time he'd considered the idea, he seemed to mule it over for a moment his brow creasing in annoyance as he did.

"Honestly I hadn't considered it, thinking of the 'how' didn't seem all that important." He admitted. It made sense, would I even have considered it if I hadn't recognised the Uchiha, probably not. No, without prompting no one in their right mind would delve into that mystery while fleeing and fighting for their lives.

"But it's not a bad idea. I haven't seen anything that might be used for communication but then I haven't been looking." We agreed to keep the search just between ourselves, it seemed more secure.

After we traded information. Weapons, in B's case little more than the pistol he'd wielded earlier, two bats and whatever lay around the lab. Food and water were apparently in fine supply with Kabuto charging little more than protection and the occasional manual assistance. And finally the view. Apparently the building had roof access, not exactly convenient access but it was there all the same. Not much to see with the exception of a small bundle of houses to the north and a church to the North west, the place had all the makings of a quaint Spanish town…overrun by the living dead.

* * *

"You going to do that all night mister silver?" a voice cooed but I passed it no heed continuing my task silently, the woman wasn't eager to be denied however as a foot began to work its way along the inside of my thigh. I did move now pushing the offending limb away and earning an exaggerated pout from the woman.

"I have a second pair." I left the threat implied as my companion abandoned that line of warfare. As I shifted the last piece into place she found her new route much to my chagrin.

"I'm hungry mister Kashi?" she moaned kicking her feet for emphasis, for a moment I considered a gag before better judgement and my conscience got the best of me.

"You just ate." I shouldn't have engaged her, it would only prolong the annoying banter, but I found myself curiously in need of some social contact.

"You fed me this morning mister secret agent man, a candy bar is hardly an all-day kind of meal." Had it really been that long. I hadn't noticed with the effort of keeping track of both the bio-threats and my prisoner. Coincidently I wondered if she was going to make up some new nickname with every damn sentence.

"I'm afraid we have to ration the supplies miss Mitarashi." I answered. Though technically we actually didn't have any food and I needed to find more, this sounded more comforting and that was my speciality. Comforting, knife combat and wreaking havoc with little more than a pistol; the well rounded Kakashi Hatake.

"Then why am I handcuffed, you could use my help mister chauvinist or don't you think a little girl could help out a big strong man like you." Her eyes held such an intense fire that for a moment I almost failed to realise that what she'd just said was little more than bizarre madness disguising itself as a sentence.

"Miss Mitarashi you are handcuffed as you are a convicted felon…not because you're a woman." It would be later that I realised the sentence had been purposefully bizarre to distract me and lower my guard.

"Convicted drug dealer. What am I gonna get the zombies addicted to blow?" she shrieked and I briefly found my thoughts floating back to the gag idea.

"You also stabbed two police men and gave a third a confession." I highlighted, neither knifing had proved fatal but it hadn't been for want of intent but rather a poorly maintained blade. For her part all Anko did was shrug, grin and then whip the no longer binding handcuffs across my brow.

I woke up later to the woman sitting casually plopped on my chest pouting in a way that would have been adorable had she not the dress taste of an eastern European prostitute shopping on the cheap. My gun was bizarrely still where I left it and not pointed at my temple by the crazy woman, though I supposed it was early days yet in that regard.

"See mister silver doesn't this prove I'm trustworthy?" She asked with a sugary sweet grin, so I was mister silver again. Once I'd checked myself over and assured myself my weapon had not been sabotaged I admitted it did...somewhat.

"The way I see it, you're pretty good with that gun and I got myself a way with locks besides a handful of other tricks to shock and mystify the masses. So if we stick together there's much less of a chance we'll turn into zombie turds." She explained brightly. I picked out a couple of things quickly, the door open when it hadn't been before and that most of the valuables were just out of place.

"You got as far as the stairs and saw the way blocked didn't you." The exaggerated expression told be two things, firstly that she had intended to abandon me for dead until she realised I could be of better use and secondly that she didn't give a fuck that I knew that.

"Fine Mitarashi, no more handcuffs." I got the feeling I'd regret this little partnership and likely rather soon given my luck. I wonder what Obito would have done, what exactly he had done when this island had taken him.

* * *

Povs; Tenten, Neji, Hinata, Sasuke, Tenten, Kakashi.

Aw nobody thought Kakashi was going to stay gone did they, or that I'd really make him only a school teacher. Anyway let me know your views and opinions on the chapter.

Also am I being boycotted or something, nobody seemed all that keen to review the last chapter which worries me.

R&R


	10. Hickey

Title; Lucky

Disclaimer; Nope I don't own any of the Naruto characters.

Okay so the pairing will be SasuHina in the end, but don't expect me to avoid muddying the waters a bit first. Just trust me, in the end SasuHina.

Beware the timeline, I never said all this was perfectly chronological…or that I wouldn't skip minor things.

Artemis Of The Golden Distaff- I agree too good. Neji's fate remains to be seen. Yep Prostitute and Client, not exactly important to the story it just sort of amused me. That and I like to have loose treads in my stories, things that aren't really explained in depth or effect the story but make the world around the story less empty and get readers minds wandering off in bizarre tangents.

FallingRaindrops- Haha Boycotting will likely lead to me being passive aggressive in the narrative. Sorry about Neji.

Justsomenobody- Thank you. Hate to say it but this chapter's unlikely to answer any questions…actually it'll probably just give you a whole new list worth but there are a few hints in there about what's to come.

Manga Aficionado- That's an interesting theory. Haha of course all the zombies and monsters and especially Orochimaru and Kabuto are sort of bummed out now…I can almost hear them resolving to be more evil.

Callat3am- Yeah I grew up on old Resi and I've always liked Silent hill. Not much of a fan of the Walking Dead though I'm afraid. Very glad to know you're enjoying.

Chapter 10-

* * *

I raked the back of my hand along my jaw enjoying the rough feel of the light stubble that had grown over the last few days. I was sure the sight of my reflection would inspire a need to shave but my unkempt state didn't bother me so much at the moment.

We'd taken to avoiding one another, or at least I'd taken to avoiding the other occupants of this floor for the morning. Something about a hangover always made me intensely antisocial and it seemed a good idea to avoid making any unnecessary attachments here. Hinata was still missing and Sakura captured, I would not be staying long.

The good Doctor's library had proved the ideal hideaway, I didn't doubt in large part thanks to the grotesque trophies being all the more plentiful here. On the stained study table alone were eyes, inflamed organs and a ghoulish; head mouth held open in a silent never ending scream and it brain's exposed to the open air. It was enough to make me physically ill if I paid it any real attention.

The books instead garnered my focus. Most of them were thick medical journals with obscure names that I could scarcely read let alone want to. Others though, hidden away in the far corner were much more interesting. These small books held no names and bore a rough human scrawl instead of the cleanly typed print of the medical volumes.

I picked up the first leafing through the rather bizarre story that filled it's pages. The narrative was that of a mad man's, at times the author would abandon the names and instead refer to characters entirely by only a prominent feature. 'Large nose has become hostile, this makes him the third.' 'Scar resists entering stage one, more observation required.'

They all featured a similar…rhythm I supposed was the only way to describe it. There were the stages, four of them sometimes referred to as phases. The first being hostility and the others more vague in nature. At a certain point in the diary the writer would claim to 'retire' from the others. Most of what he wrote would take some time to deceiver if I even could, he referred a lot to an 'original' work, one that I hadn't come across yet. There were other titles too besides 'original' and the stages. All featured a 'matriarch', a 'hunter', a 'lover', more than one 'pawn' and sometimes a 'virgin' which all seemed to describe different paths the people took within the experiment.

Just as I set a purple bound volume back in its place I heard a scuffled behind me and twisted to see the doctor Kabuto not far behind me. His hands were bunched in his lab coat's pockets and he wore a smile that was particularly unnerving.

"Can I help you there?" he asked his voice dripping with a poison politeness. That wasn't good.

"Got any James Lee Burke around here?" I asked my voice holding a false tone of boredom that I suspected did little to convince the creepy Doctor that I hadn't been snooping…I probably shouldn't have mentioned an Author that wrote detective stories in my cover, it would have been a clever cloaked reference if it were fucking stupid at the same time.

"Nothing like that I'm afraid little brother. But perhaps I can show you something much more interesting." He offered waving a hand over his collection of both books and dioramas with a sinister smile. Somehow it was the familiarity of the title 'little brother' that bothered me most. Family titles had been used in the journals, to highlight particularly interesting peoples or specimens as he'd called them.

"Actually I've got to speak with Tenten, thanks though." I didn't really care if he caught the lie. I was just now getting the feeling that this man couldn't be deceived in anything let alone by the likes of me.

"Another time little one then, another time."

* * *

Shino didn't really say what he planned, rather I was just given a time and a place to have Temari with me. Just after the food was dropped we needed to be in the 'hell' room as it was designated. It was just past the area and was the most decorative of the rooms in this entire pit.

Butchers hooks hung in crooked rows some taken up with fresh meat too hasty or too stupid to keep to this underworlds vague but rigidly enforced rules. In one corner lay a small platform connected to the room above by thick rust coated chains, it was how the creature holding us moved between levels.

Temari appeared shaky. It was hard to describe exactly but she was jittery beyond all sense. She'd lost her bout today as the ugly bruises on her cheeks and ribs proved and with the loss she was denied any access to the food drop. I wondered if it was the drugs. She'd been eating the tainted food for a while now she could very well be experiencing withdrawal.

I didn't help that Shino was late. I was still casting edgy looks into the next room as I felt a weight settle on my shoulder. I glanced back to the sweaty blonde surprised to see the mist in her eyes had cleared somewhat. I offered her a smile wondering if she'd regained her senses.

"I've been thinking about why you brought me here Sakura?" She spoke her stormy green eyes riveted on mine.

"You're such a tiny thing…" she muttered her eyes glassing up again and I wondered exactly what was going on inside the woman's tainted mind, her grip on my shoulder tightened as she swayed forward for a moment her eyes pained.

"But your eyes they…you're a cocky little bitch…" the last word was all but spat as she spun me into a tight grip. The facts all became too apparent as the larger well feed woman managed to hold me with a single arm her other hand ghosting over my stomach and my legs until she pulled free my hidden weapon.

"Gonna shoot me were you, gobble up the good bits but leave me alive. It's a good idea really. Gotta do what you gotta do huh? Yeah." She hissed in my ear, wrenching me hard against the wall. The air left me all in a painful rush as the woman's hand fell to my throat gripping my jugular painfully tight. I could feel my head growing light and saw my vision blur as the blonde leaned in her eyes wild and her lips smirking as her tongue slithered out to taste my cheek. My own gun pressed against my stomach as a warning.

Animal instinct came to life entwined with desperation. Something most forget about guns is that they are long distance weapons and within arm's reach a rather poor choice, if you add the handicap that the gun's bearer cannot under any circumstance kill the captive…

My knee crashed into her bruised rib cage as my hand swept aside the gun, it retorted angrily but too late as the woman hesitated in firing. I smashed my forehead into hers and rammed forward with my shoulder taking us both to the concrete floor and sending the gun skidding away noisily. Temari groaned in pain her injuries aggravated as I rolled off her and crawled to the fallen weapon. I felt a hand grab at my leg half way there and kicked back with the other ready to remove teeth.

"Have I missed something?" A dark voice rasped as Shino peered down at us. I used the distraction to snatch up my weapon and levelled it loosely at the blonde. My breath came out in rabid shaky gasps as a voice whispered to me to do something to the other woman, not kill…just something to slow her down. Like a muzzle on a rabid dog. The warning in the assassin's eyes hastened me back to my senses.

I lowered my weapon but didn't put it away.

* * *

"Tenten?" He called me twice more before I responded glancing at the young man in slight agitation that melted away at the sight of him looking so concerned. He really could be rather sweet if you were ready to read between the lines. I settled my pistol and cloth down gently and turned to face him fully.

"What's up school boy?" I asked cracking a smirk I wanted to come out as cocky…not exhausted as it felt.

"You look almost as bad as the bloody things out there. Haven't you slept?" So maybe you had to read between the lines pretty damn hard. I laughed a little drily.

"Couldn't." I started to say why, to try to articulate what kept me up at night but it all felt so damn awkward. Like I was trying to spit up a melon or something solid and massive and fucking painful the words just got clogged in my throat. Even as I ran it through my mind I couldn't seem to finish my statements.

That I was afraid I wouln't wake up, that's the kind of thing a toddler says to you. That the last bloody time I woke up I was pinned by a fucking rapist. No I wouldn't say that, I didn't want to bloody say it and even if I did I always hated people who threw their pain around to justify their nonsense or insanity. I refused to play the wailing flailing fucking victim. I would never be the damn victim.

"I just couldn't drift off, you snore to damn loud." I offered with a smile I was sure was much more like my natural one.

The Uchiha looked to be between two minds as he glanced away, a moment later his hand found mine and he began to pull me toward the couch. I didn't protest but allowed a lewd smile to colour my features.

"Aw I thought you said I looked bad today?" I teased as he pulled me onto the beat up sofa.

"That's not…Look I don't want to spend any longer here than we need to but there's no way you can leave like this." I realised his actual intentions as he gentle forced me to lay down cradling my head in his lap, an arm lay protectively over my stomach and the other rested on the armrest with his revolver.

"You've got nothing to worry about now Ten." I considered protesting being treated like a child suffering from nightmares but a more persuasive voice brought to life by the illusion of security that Sasuke offered quickly coaxed me to slumber.

* * *

I think I may have been going mad.

The heat kept me in a constant state of drowsiness as I willed myself through the featureless orange tunnels. Every now and again there would come a wail, the chirping of my hunter- I was sure he was hunting me- but worse than that was the echoing silence where I couldn't estimate where the thing was and all I could hear were my own steps, my wheezing breaths and the deafening thump of my heart.

My eyes had begun to sting and I blinked back tears as I passed through another arch the stone cut with marking of some strange language that didn't even remotely look like anything from the human world. More and more I seemed to find evidence that I'd fallen into hell at some point.

I found a door after the sixteenth cry. Without natural light or any kind of mental composer I was forced to judge the time by the only constant recognisable thing I had down here, my pursuer's war cry.

The rooms walls were a deep charcoal and it seemed devoid of enemies as I flipped the light switch. I moved into the room machine pistol raised clumsily but at the ready as I fought not to drop my guard, the air in here was noticeably cooler and the urge to sag with relief or search for the window I imagined was almost overwhelming.

Cages, animal cages, ran in rows throughout the room and left much of the shadows a mystery to me as I pushed on into the room shutting the door behind me softly. Most of the iron boxes were empty but not all as I took in the sight of different breeds of dogs in different states of decomposition. Some were more alive than others perking up as I passed where their cellmate barely reacted. It was a testing area I knew, perhaps even the birthing ground of the disease that had infected the 'locals'.

I heard a whimpering as I neared the end of the first row of cages. A messy theatre was set up in the back, blood smeared and stinking of a whole arsenal of smells I didn't care to distinguish. Beneath the flicking lamps a hound lay strapped to the surgery table, unlike his brothers however there was no decomposition…or none yet anyway. Behind the table a white clothed man stood with his back to me a needle hanging in one hand, at least I thought it was a man I didn't particularly care.

"P-put your hands up!" It sounded stupid to say, like I was playing cops and robs with my cousin again but what else was there to be said. I could have shot him but on top of lacking the cold blooded ruthlessness to do such a thing there was the matter of answers. This man could have them.

I undid the binds on the dog single handed and waited as the collie bound off the table but the man didn't lift his arms, he hadn't even seemed to have heard me.

"I-I said put your ha-" The lights flickered off again and he spun before I could repeat myself completely the needle in his hand flashing threateningly as he launched himself at me over the steel table. The table though wasn't bolted down and as he collided with it he brought the table with him. I got shots off, the handful of bullets punching into his torso but it was useless. I felt his hands on my shoulders as his weight and the table both came down on me biting painfully into my hips hard enough I feared for a moment I'd be cut in two. The fear was replaced a moment later by disappointment as the light flickered on and I saw the man's blood soaked jaw and dead dolls eyes looming over me.

He snarled and snapped forward.

I shifted to the side feeling pain tear its way along my side as I just about dodged the blow. With a manic desperation I slammed my free hand into his chest and pushed hard my other hand jerking on my pistol franticly trying to pull it through the gap between the table and the floor.

I heard another snarl and a crunch, my finger or my wrist being tore open I was sure and yet I was unable to feel the pain my adrenaline so high as I desperately tried to get to my weapon. The weight shifted for a moment and I got the pistol free. My arm was untouched and I took in the sight of the growling hound over the ghoul's shoulder snarling as it wrenched the creature back and away from me. I wasted no time as I woodenly twisted and pushed the weapon's muzzle to the monster's temple pulling the trigger.

Brain matter splattered over the floor to my left and the collie finally succeeded in wrestling the now truly dead man off the table. As I pushed the table off me grimacing at the red and purple discolouring of my stomach the hound returned to my side nudging my shoulder and glancing at me almost expectantly.

"Always wanted a dog." I'd never thought of highlighting a canines ability to save me from an assault by the Undead to my father, wonder if it would have helped my case or gotten me institutionalised?

* * *

"How do we do this?" I asked swallowing what I could of my anger, of my indignation and of my completely rational horror that after having missed just one god damn meal this woman was ready to cannibalise me. Shino at least had the decency to look halfway apologetic, Temari though…she just looked pissed, pissed and still fucking hungry.

"I'm sure you realise that this elevator is your only way out. The creature uses his tremendous weight to activate a switch beneath the platform, an impossible thing to replicate." Spoke the tall man disrobing from the waist up. I blushed but didn't look away- mostly due to the fact that I still shared breathing space with the twisted blonde. His torso seemed to be a living t-shirt of flesh, frightening fucking flesh at that. Insects most of which I couldn't even guess at a name from crawled in vivid dark purple, gold and black and iron chains were wrapped tight around his forearms.

"So we climb…how are you going to distract it?" I was expecting a rational well thought out strategy from the cold man, a professional killer put to good use. Instead he didn't answer me, rather he stepped in front of the nearest dying murderer speared on a meat hook slowly blessed himself, then the other man and broke his neck with a terrible wet crack. I swallowed hard the lump rising in my chest as noise echoed from above and Shino moved onto the next hook repeating his ritual.

"Y-y-you're going t-to…shit you'll feed yourself to it!" I was stuttering, a too familiar habit of someone I knew but never something I'd related to myself. Shino was still all silence as he moved onto a woman who'd begun to weep, realising what exactly was happening around her. She called him an angel just before he snapped her neck impassive. Impassive as if he weren't killing people with the indifference one would flick through a magazine, as if he wasn't inviting the monstrosity above to tear him apart…slowly.

"I'm going to fight it miss Sakura…My father, he was a collector and above all else he despised the spiders that ate his precious insects, with the exception of the assassin spider. One that hunted its own kind and only them." He spoke turning away from his last victim now limp and growing cold. He began to walk to the door passing a more than startled looking Temari and reached me. Gently he laid a hand on my shoulder.

"If I had to be a monster then I should hunt other monsters, he said once." He wore an expression of indifference and I didn't fail to make the connection.

"Good luck." I spoke woodenly as a tremble in the very earth alerted us to the arrival of our Jailor, infuriated beyond any form of human measure. Shino pushed me away roughly and sprinted away as the creature threw itself into a lunge its knife flashing dangerously as it tore against the chains above where I'd fallen.

Temari was already halfway up the rusted chains before the first human cry broke the air and I came to my senses scrambling after her. The battered girl moved fast but somehow I kept pace racing after her through the showers and the white room where we'd been stripped bare. She reached the elevator first smacking the lever and diving onto the platform, I barely made it on time jumping and climbing onto the slowly raising metal and rolling to barely avoid being cut in two as it entered the stone shaft.

Gasping and breathing hard I grasped my pistol in a sweaty grip siting in the furthest corner from the savage looking blonde. She glared at me with enough force to peel the bark from a tree.

We came to a noisy jolting stop and together stared out momentarily overcome at the sight of genuine moonlight and starlight filtering through the still open shed door. And together we scrambled though the tight passage pushing at one another in our haste to be in the open air.

More than the open air greeted us. I thought my heart might have fallen clean of my chest as a scream threatened to work itself free from my cracked lips.

Appearing almost curious at us the massive leather clad figure's attention flickered between us in indecision. He couldn't give chase, or I didn't think so, not with the unconscious captives he held. But would he even attempt to re-imprison us? There was a scuffle as Temari began to run at breakneck speed for the forests protection. I bolted to in a second as the creature's focus shifted entirely onto me the still immobile prey.

My blood flared in my ears as I ran and my vision was no more than a tunnel. As I hit the tree line I thought I heard the bizarre sounds of a helicopter taking off, a slow whistle of something twirling incredibly fast, then came the sound of breaking branches and a horrible cruel empty laugh that rang though the night.

And then pain, nothing but pain as something hard and dark tore my legs out from beneath me with a terrible crack.

The darkness swallowed me.

* * *

"Are you coming, school boy?" I asked almost cheerfully to the now brooding Uchiha. I'd elected not to tell B or his gang we were leaving. No if he wanted to play spy with the freak upstairs then that was his business, all I wanted to do was get Sasuke and I out of this damned hellhole.

I wanted to say it was entirely due to the younger man's paranoia that we were leaving. But more and more I was becoming unnerved by that doctor's condescending smile, as if he knew some secret answer to something we hadn't even figure out the question to yet. And then there was the way he watched my partner, somewhere between the way a scientist watched a prized specimen and a jerk off watched a cheerleader…I didn't like it.

"You got enough rest then?" he asked and I wondered if I should start calling him mother instead of school boy…nah that would probably make me a bit creepy.

"Of course my oh so daring protector, not even any bad dreams got past you." I teased him with a wink. I expected him to blush at the over the top praise coming from such a beautiful woman, instead he only looked all the more concerned, almost frightened even. I had to remind myself of his age, that he'd fall that more deeper in love in his innocence. I pressed a soft kiss to his dry lips.

"I'm fine okay, we gotta focus more on getting out of here okay." I offered him with a reassuring smile, it seemed to have the desired effect as he nodded and shook his mind free of pointless concerns and theories. I'd never seen anyone else quite so adept at tying himself in mental knots.

"And finding Hinata and Sakura." He added and I blinked back for a second suddenly aware for a moment that I'd…sort of forgotten that little detail. Or maybe I was losing hope, we hadn't heard a peep from Hinata in the higher levels and Sakura…she'd been taken by that thing, how could she…

"Greedy, you'd think one woman would be enough?" If that had been meant as a joke, and I honestly had meant it as one…then you wouldn't have been able to tell from my tone.

"What?" He asked as if he'd misunderstood. I mimicked, pretending I hadn't heard his simple question at all.

"Hey school boy, give me a hand down here would you?" I asked drawing him away from the potentially very awkward conversation. I'd barely glanced at the floor below before having the Uchiha lower me down too intent on escaping a bad topic. I hit the floor in a crouch with a shaky groan and raised myself glancing around for something to aid in the Uchiha's own decent.

Instead I found asymmetrical hair and empty dark eyes behind thick glasses, a familiar looking face from a really old dream. The woman had me before my mind could even process a defence and her teeth sank deep into my collar bone…it was only by share luck alone I didn't stumble out into view of Sasuke. Instead I pushed back hard thrusting a knee up hard into the dead woman's solar plexus forcing her off me.

I had my gun drawn in a second and a bullet tore through the bitch's head in even less time…but there was still blood dripping down my chest and my mind was all in panic and I could hear Sasuke calling to me ready to risk the fall to get down to me…to save me.

He wanted to save me.

Numb fingers moved as I tore the hem of my shirt wrapping a too tight and painful bandage over my visible wound. Then I untied my jersey from my waist, my good flesh hiding baggy jersey and pulled it over my head. The Uchiha hit the ground with a grunt, a roll and then a shaky curse, but he hadn't broken any bones in the head strong move to reach me.

"I'm fine school boy, just a single ghoul." I threw towards him relishing the concern in his eyes. And the trust. He trusted me, and he loved me, and he wanted to be with me, and we were going to leave this place together. Both of us together, we'd be fine as long as we were together. I couldn't hurt him, and losing me like this…that would hurt him a lot. So…

"I missed you. Missed me?" I asked in a jovial tune. He smiled his shaky little smile, the one I recognised as just for me when I made jokes he couldn't laugh at cause he was still too shaken, too worried.

I was Teagan Ten for ten Williams, I'd never been sick a damned day of my life. I'd be fine. We'd be fine.

* * *

Pov's- Sasuke, Sakura, Tenten, Hinata, Sakura, Tenten.

Yay so Hinata made a new not dying friend. Everyone else…they were less lucky.

I figured I've been going too slow on the story so here's a chapter that firmly fucks the status quo of the last few, let me know what you think.

Also just as a small question as I'm reflecting in the new year on just how I write. What scene in any of my stories ever is your favourite and why exactly? I've been experimenting with different genres I'm sure you've noticed and I wanted to know with personally you think I hit my stride with best. If it's not too much trouble, I don't mind how you let me know pm or review I'd just appreciate it. If you don't, well thanks for reading anyways .

Happy new year, if you haven't already check out some of my other stuff…it ain't that terrible.

R&R


	11. Checking out the City

Title; Lucky

Disclaimer; Nope I don't own any of the Naruto characters.

Okay so the pairing will be SasuHina in the end, but don't expect me to avoid muddying the waters a bit first. Just trust me, in the end SasuHina.

Beware the timeline, I never said all this was perfectly chronological…or that I wouldn't skip minor things.

FallenRaindrops- I don't know, I like to subvert tropes so anything's possible. Sasuke's the youngest, plus he's of those abandonment issue types so I figured he's buy in deepest to the idea of them being a team- even if he'd never admit it. Tenten lost her phone but Sasuke still has his. I actually wrote Shino and Temari to contrast one another, in any kind of reasonable world Shino's a monster and Temari's a normal innocent person. In an unreasonable worlds however… Haha I hear you, more heroic dogs.

Chapter 11-

* * *

For a while I was numb, lost somewhere in the darkness between worlds. I could only hear the sound of my heart thumping as everything else in the world fell away, hidden beneath a low buzzing. With icy cold fingers I could feel the glass I lay in damp with morning dew and just as easily I could feel the slick sensation of some thicker liquid coating my legs.

As the morning light flared through the canopy and burned my retina I felt pain returning to me, and shock gave way to instinct. I stemmed the blood flow to my leg, tightening my plain belt in a makeshift tourniquet as I fought back revulsion. The attack had only really glanced me, even a single degree to the left and it would have torn me to pieces. But even lucky as I was, damage had been done. A gash had been torn into my right leg deep enough that I could see the bright glimmer of my own bone.

Sweaty and pale I pulled myself against the truck of an old oak tree. I'd torn my pant leg clean off to wrap around the wound in an effort that seemed superficial at best. Blood, so much of my own blood stained the scenery. I felt my mind slipping into a panic mode I'd only ever glimpsed at before, how many days since I'd eaten, how much blood had I lost…was I still losing, how long until an infection if I didn't clean the wound, did I move to find shelter and food and risk further damage or bind my time and…what pray someone had dreamt of me the night before and were now mounting a rescue.

I wanted to sleep, to see if I would dream. If I did then I'd know I made it through this, I'd survive to meet someone but…another thought came, the deciding one. Could the dead ones smell a living human's blood? Just as any animal would track its prey. If so then the dinner bell had been rung pretty damn loud here.

I didn't manage to make it to my feet. Instead I was forced to crawl dragging my dead leg behind me. My one good knee and my palms were scratched and cut by the time I reached a break in the trees and a sight that seemed at the moment only created to yank at my chain.

* * *

"So…how about Waffles, Waffles is a good name right?" I asked my companion, the recently dubbed Waffles. She- or maybe he, I was respecting Waffles privacy on the matter- didn't response with anything more than a low whine that almost sounded concerned.

Was it crazy to talk to a dog, probably, but I had to talk to someone and right now that meant either talking to myself or talking to Waffles.

I hesitated at the other animals cages, debating what exactly I should do about them. Sure they were docile now and appeared harmless but who's to say what potential they really had. I'd watched Hanabi play those awful video games before and as well as giving me night terrors for weeks they'd thought me a valuable lesson- valuable I suppose in precisely this context and this context alone.

Zombie dogs are fucking dangerous.

"What do you think Waffles?" My canine companion didn't answer- obviously- but I noticed she wasn't feeling too social able toward her former neighbours. I tried a different approach drawing closer to a cage, her reaction was swift, barking and growls aimed at the cage and the occasional whine at me. It was understandable I admitted a moment later as the sluggish terrier opened its maw- not in the traditional way mind you, rather its face split wetly along five uneven lines opening its entire face up. A barbed too long tongue lashed out threateningly missing me by mere inches. And then in another second it was little more than a sleepy terrier again, exactly the kind I would have felt compelled to release from captivity.

"Waffles, I think this is the start of a beautiful friendship." I muttered patting my companions head affectionately.

A little hesitant about making my way through the animal cages again I busied myself striping the room of any resources. There were scalpels and medical equipment but it seemed there mostly for ascetic value most of it being rusted or worn well beyond any kind of legal or wise usage.

A small package had been hidden though, taped to the bottom of the over turned operating table. I sat cross legged and checked the contents; disinfectant, burn ointment, a needle and thread, two rolls of gauze, three injection needles accompanied by a note promising 'I'll make you happy' and another three with a note of 'I'll wake you up', pain medication and stimulants I figured…if I was willing to believe the notes.

Lastly I glanced at the needle still gripped in my former assailants hand. In those games my sister played the protagonist would probably take the needle, then use it on some later seemingly invincible monstrosity causing it to overdose or creating an explosive imbalance…something vaguely worded and reeking of pseudo-science.

I took the needle anyway, that whole rather have a cake and not need it than need a cake and not have it logic coming to mind. Or was that having your jacket and eating it too…no that didn't really make sense. What exactly was my point again?

"What do I mean Waffles?" Perhaps it had been the constant terror and fear though now significantly lessened by Waffles presence, maybe it was the fulfilment of my childhood desire to have a dog but I was starting to suspect I'd gone just a little mad from my stay on this island.

I'd start to worry if Waffles started begun answering me.

"Let's check on the others." I still spoke in my hushed whisper and Waffles still remained quiet but I'd felt a degree of control return to me and with it my concern for others, namely my traveling companions. Was Sasuke still waiting for me up above…was I even still in the same building, this underground maze might very well stretch the entire island for all I knew.

Sakura Haruno, Injured. Injured but not captured. I couldn't help but wonder exactly what happened, had she managed to kill that monster, landed a fatal shot that simple took a little while to kick in. Or had she escaped it, taking damage as she did. I wanted to sleep, to force myself to dream of the four of us all reunited again, escaping on some helicopter, or boat. Anything, just together and off the damned island.

Teagan Williams, Infected and Unknown. But my dream would never come. Tenten was infected now, how had the young Uchiha reacted…did he even know. I shouldn't have been surprised I supposed, she'd been among how many ghouls half buried by rubble the last I'd seen of her. And Unknown…that didn't sit well, some status that whomever was feeding us information didn't even know how to describe. Not dead, not injured, not bitten- at least not in itself- and not captured…something unprecedented and unfamiliar but apparently worth mentioning. My need to know only increased as I read the third entry.

Sasuke Uchiha, Unknown. It didn't escape my notice either the group lines as I entered the sub menu. Sasuke and Tenten were together. Even ignoring the problem that was the Unknown status, I was left with the sudden desire to break something. What was the use of a phone that couldn't make a phone call. What was the use of knowing the Uchiha was in danger if I couldn't warn him.

* * *

I saw it before Sasuke did. Paranoid and hyper aware as I was I picked out the ghoul creeping just behind the tree line easily. We should have avoided it, even if it was only a single enemy both Sasuke and I had lost our melee weapons and found nothing that could replace them yet. Instead though I lead us closer and fixed the Uchiha a look painted with concern.

"Can I see your phone? We need to keep a check on the others." He complied easily admitting that it was a good idea. Though he did comment on how weird it was for me to offer a reason- and a sensible one at that- instead of just outright demanding what I wanted. I made a note of the slip.

As I scrolled through the names uncaringly, failing to actually make note of any of the changes, I stumbled closer and closer to the ghoul appearing for all the world absorbed in my concern. I heard Sasuke's breath take a sharp intake as he saw the creature through the greenery only feet away from my shoulder, I heard him calling out to me and reaching for his gun.

The creature's lunge almost hit me full on but I'd been ready. The phone flew from grip but in quick jerky movements I half pushed the ghoul away half dodged the attack, exposing my back on purpose as I did. I heard the retort of Sasuke's revolver and the splat of the round tearing through the ghouls soft skull.

"Come on." His tone was angry, but I knew it was at the situation and not me in particular. Sasuke couldn't be angry at me. He pulled me along the path northward cutting a vicious pace as we fled the noise of the gunshot. My chest ached but I didn't mind so much, my plan had worked and I'd separated the Uchiha from his cell phone.

"What the hell was that?" He rounded on me once we were far enough away, actually we'd stumbled upon the town B had described to me. He pushed me hard against the worn damp wood of the ancient church, concern fuelled anger burning in his stony eyes. When had it rained?

"How did you miss that thing Ten?" he asked and I pulled my trump card, one I hadn't remembered using since my parent's divorce actually. I allowed a few genuine grief stricken tears to trickle from my eyes. They were real, I'd been holding them back since that ghoul almost had me on the cliff the first day and they'd only been building with the monsters and the scum and that bitch sticking her rotten teeth in me. So the tears weren't fake, I'd just be making a pragmatic use of them.

"They're dead Sasuke…Hinata and Sakura, their status…." I trailed off taking a certain pleasure at seeing the anger drain from his eyes. I liked him best like that I thought, that point of change where his anger faded but his mental blocks hadn't raised themselves back up yet. I could see right inside him then, lonely sad boy that he was. And I could see his feelings as his whole world collapsed around him except what was still before him, except me. I became his whole world.

Gently he pulled me into an embrace, apologising softly into my hair.

I forgave him, those other women wouldn't be on his mind anymore.

* * *

I found my way back up after twelve more shrieks, or I'd found how I'd make my way up anyway. An old coal mine style elevator had been set up in the corner of a room that looked to have been similar to the work rooms I'd seen earlier but on a smaller scale with furnaces and work tables taking up a lot of the available space. It was at least for the moment empty.

The console was inscribed in wore letters that might have originally made up Spanish or Portuguese words but wouldn't have been legible at this point even if I had spoken the language. Still after I'd bashed away at the controls for long enough it seemed to do what I wanted, a small light near the middle marked 69 went out as the one to its left lit up and there was a hum as the elevator began to make its way down.

As the idea of reaching sunlight again and perhaps even rescuing my cousin began to seem a little less impossible I heard Waffles begin to growl low in her throat and heard a series of clanks and clicks before a high wailing began much louder than it had been before.

I twisted and lifted my pistol spraying the last of my bullets at the creature as it danced forward nimbly darting to the right and flanking around me as my weapon clicked empty. I dropped the now useless weapon and threw myself flat on my stomach only just avoiding the creatures claws as it surged and sprung at me.

Franticly I crawled twisting onto my side as I reached the cover of the work benches. I looped the shotgun around into a hasty grip ready to fire despite the risk of hurting myself but found the room empty expect for Waffles…who had raised her head high and barked viciously at the roof.

Realisation hit me with only a second to spare and I rolled from under one table to the next as something thumped down on the table and sharp talons tore thin slices through the thick wood that had been covering me chipping and tearing deep groves into the stone floor. I swore and twisted again as I heard the creature jump from the first table, it tore through the second table as easily but now I'd run out of cover. I levelled the shotgun's barrel at the beast.

The retort damn near tore my hands off and kicked hard enough into my shoulder to draw tears but the effect was worth it. The insect thing was thrown backwards, blue black blood flashing in an ugly arc through the air. I stumbled to my feet as a soft beep and a rattle alerted me to the timely arrival of the elevator. Only Waffles bark snapped my attention back behind me.

I brought the dark riot gun up to the ready but it only offered me a moments protection as the creature's claws lashed out cutting deep groves into the barrel and tearing it away from me. A follow up slash almost parted my mortal coil had I not ducked just in time, almost just in time I reflected as a sharp pain announced a new wound on my left shoulder…frighteningly close to my neck.

I had no other moves to make as the creature came forward and my back found itself firmly against a wall. Waffles disagreed however, the much smaller canine flung herself viciously at the creatures back in what was quickly becoming a signature attack of hers distracting it and giving me a chance to move.

Ignoring the obvious idea of fleeing to the elevator I instead moved to the nearest furnace. Wrapping my military jacket around my hands I grasped one of the iron bars poking from the fiery gates. My hands burned, even though the fabric and I moved quickly. Twice I smashed the red hot iron into the creature's legs shaking it before a third strike swept it from its feet. As the thing scuttled awkwardly on the floor confused by its injuries and the light I took the chance ramming the blunt but pointed end of the iron into its torso. It sunk deep with a wet squelch and I staggered backward snatching up my shotgun and whistling for Waffles to follow as I ran in a pained shuffle to the elevator.

I heard the iron being ripped free and a whole new kind of intense wailing begin when we were only half way to our sanctuary. My hand went for the last weapon on my belt, Nagato's gift. I fired a flare blindly behind me as we made it to the elevator. I pulled the cage open just enough for Waffles and I to squeeze in before slamming it shut and making for the controls.

Before I could get the piece of junk working I felt the carriage rock as the creature slammed itself against the cage. It raked it's claws against the steel furiously, desperate to get to its prey. But it had been injured, and the light of the flare still persisted hurting its fragile senses all the more. I found the right controls before it even got through the first layer of the triple barred door.

My hands hurt, from the shotgun and the boiling iron, and my shoulder stung ferociously. Waffles hadn't been entirely lucky either as she lapped at a wound in her left hind leg. As best I could I took care of our wounds with the medical kit. I probably needed stitches on my shoulder and the ointment had been intended for less severe burns, but it would do, had to do. I pulled Waffles into a hug as the elevator creaked, climbing higher and higher more slowly than it had come down as it took the longer journey up to the highest level.

* * *

The car came to a stop outside the quiet looking hospital, well it was as quiet as everything else was here. No people but lots of little noises. A radio buzzing with commentary from some sports match, footsteps made by spectres, quiet conversation among friends too hushed to make out and a dozen other little sounds filtering through the air from the speakers on every corner.

I glanced at the driver as I pulled myself from the car. He shouldn't have and maybe the fact that he did was testament to just how much blood I'd lost…but he looked human in the low lighting.

"Have a nice day miss." The accent was pleasant and upbeat, a New Orleans accent I thought…or how people from New Orleans sounded in movies anyway. Two things were disturbing about it, firstly that the words had come pre-recorded from the radio's speakers and secondly that it had known I was a woman.

"You too." I grunted painfully and sardonically, I wished I hadn't as the mask on the driver shifted its expression into a large creepy smile.

There were wheel chairs near the entrance and I managed to pull myself into one despite the excruciating pain that came with the task. Once settled I wheeled my way into the hospital finding its service counter unsurprisingly empty. That was alright, I was pretty sure I could find the pain meds, a pack of A positive blood and some more pain meds all on my own.

I opted for the elevator instead of the stairs for obvious reasons. As I awaited the mechanical ladder I heard a scuffle from down the corridor and turned almost absent minded to the source. Decked in soft blue scrubs fronted with a massive bloodstain and glancing almost curiously at me the ghoul took a minute before it realised that I was effectively a meals on wheels delivery and began to hobble towards me.

Desperately I shifted my weight aggravating my wound as I tried to get to my pistol. I was so focused on gaining my weapon and the threat before me that I failed to recognise the beep of arrival or the doors of the elevator opening until blood stained arms reached out, dragging me backwards into the metal box.

I heard the low moan of another ghoul behind the one grabbing me as the elevator doors shifted shut.

* * *

"It's sealed up tight." Muttered the brunette stepping back from the church doors. Whomever had barricaded the doors had done so from inside and they'd done it rather well, all over the churches oaken door were scratches and tears testament to some ghouls attempts to enter.

I watched Tenten's head cock to the left suddenly but missed the look of agitation ghost her eyes too wrapped up in the sound myself. From on far away I could hear the soft jingle of a familiar song, Hinata's song soft but sounding strangely insistent. I had to glance away from my companion as she sought to catch my eyes. I always got the feeling Tenten could read me just a little too well and at this very moment at least I didn't want her to know my thoughts.

"We need weapons, and food. We should check the houses for dropped supplies." I offered making a start for the nearest rundown home. Tenten followed but her heart didn't seem as much in the effort. I had to sympathise, she'd grown particularly close to Sakura. It had been obvious with the way they interacted. Add to that she'd almost been…and it hadn't even stopped there, today alone she'd had two close calls. That fact that Tenten still managed to function was all but inhuman.

"So do you want the spoon or the butter knife?" asked the brunette after we'd turned over the place as best as possible. They really were the best options too, most of the wood and other materials in the room were so weathered that they wouldn't even make useable impromptu weapons.

"This place…why do you think they're avoiding it?" asked Tenten rather out of the blue as we searched over the second hut with already better luck, we'd discovered a half rusted but serviceable fire poker near the hole in the wall I supposed server as a fire place.

"What do you mean?" I had obviously noticed the lack of walking corpses but why did she seem to think they were actively avoiding the area.

"You saw the scratches in the church door, they had a nice meal trapped inside…so why leave before they could get in?" she asked helping me shift a dresser…the effort was rewarded as we discovered a small hollow in the wall. Twin large hairy legs quickly emerged followed by the body of a very angry looking spider. Tenten shrieked and I barely resisted the urge to pull my revolver before the woman splattered it in one swift swing of her poker…though that's not to say she didn't hammer to ugly thing's corpse several times just for good measure.

"Maybe the Warden showed up." I offered as we used the poker to fish around the hollow, we managed to draw out a small pouch with several vacuum sealed sandwiches within and a note warning us to look before we leap…with a damned smiley face at the end.

"Then why'd he not go inside, there's something here, something inside that church that's frightening them." The way she said it…I couldn't help getting the sensation that this was more than deductive reasoning and that something in the brave woman was also warning her off.

* * *

Sakura, Hinata, Tenten, Hinata, Sakura, Sasuke.

And that's chapter eleven up and done. Sakura survived the hammer toss, am I going soft? Considering the rest of the chapter…probably not. So Sakura…had more bad luck. Hinata's being sort of badass what with fighting the cricket monster and actively hunting Orochimaru, Juugo and Sasori. Sasuke's still in the dark and severely misreading the situation. And Tenten's…sort of being a dick at the moment.

Let me know what you guys think of the developments, and any theories or predictions about the over arcing direction or theme are welcome too.

Make sure you vote on my new poll by the way.

R&R


	12. Love Bite

Title; Lucky

Disclaimer; Nope I don't own any of the Naruto characters.

Okay so the pairing will be SasuHina in the end, but don't expect me to avoid muddying the waters a bit first. Just trust me, in the end SasuHina.

Beware the timeline, I never said all this was perfectly chronological…or that I wouldn't skip minor things.

Can I just say it's really sort of fun writing Sasuke's Pov at the moment. I like that readers will likely cringe a lot where he showers affection on Tenten or compliments character traits that may very well be the death of him. It's just so nice to write such wholesale Irony. Plus it's the first time I've managed to separate a character's logical perception of the world around them so much from the reality of the world.

**Manga Aficionado**- Thank you for the insight, tis much appreciated. Hopefully this chapter lives up to you expectations.

**FallenRaindrops-** Indeed, I believe you requested a badass Hinata at some point. Here she is! Sakura's got the devils luck really. Yeah Tenten's sort of going off the deep end, not all on her own mind you. Remember the Unknown status.

**Artemis Of The Golden Distaff**- Sorry I'm actually having a little trouble understanding your review of chapter 10 so this response may not be the best. The books are a clue to what Kabuto's up to but they're not necessarily why everyone's on the islands. Orochimaru has his agenda for the contestants as does whoever controls the hammer wielding Warden as does whoever's supplying information using the phones as does whoever's supplying information using the dreams. And there's still a party separate from all of those that are truly responsible for them being on the island and putting them there. Simple, no?

And yeah, I caved on the Pov's.

Chapter 12-

* * *

Hinata's Pov-

The elevator came to a stop with a noisy clatter but I waited an extra few minutes behind the cage, just listening and stretching out my exhausted senses for any sign of danger. When none seemed present and Waffles too seemed calm I pulled the cage open.

I didn't know if we were still in the same building, I doubted it considering how far I'd walked in those underground tunnels. The room I was in now seemed to be a storage room of some sort, filled to the brim with crates and old dusty furniture that looked to have come out of a movie from the mid-fifties.

Waffles trailed behind me quietly somehow sensing the need for silence as I made my way through the room. Nothing poked out in the darkness and nothing else seemed to move except my own reflection in an old mirror. I did not look good, but at the least the sight reminded me I was still stripped down for dealing with the tunnels heat and as the goose bumps on my arms told me it was no longer so unbearably cold. I untied my jacket and pulled it onto my shoulders happy at least to have covered the bruises on my reflection.

I found a creaky ancient stair case the other side of the room and decided on a stock check before I ascended into a potential battle. I only had the riot gun now and eleven rounds for it, six chambered and the other five sitting cosy in my jacket pocket. I had some medical supplies but what I really needed…the last time I'd eaten or slept had been just after and just before I'd tumbled into the underground passages, quite a while ago really. I pushed on up the staircase anyway, I had no food and it would be crazy to sleep here without some idea of the dangers that could be lurking above.

Waffles ghosted backwards, reluctant to follow as I pushed open the basement door and stepped out into the much larger room. I recognised it immediately. Nothing had been moved in the room since I'd seen it through my cousin's eyes. The churches doors had held and even now I could hear the slight sounds of someone at its door. Only maybe two though attempting to force their way in.

I was slightly surprised to hear them leave after a moment apparently giving up. It was strange but I sort of figured the ghouls were more determined than that.

Waffles finally came into the room but something was still obviously causing her distress. I patted her head gently before I started retracing my cousins footsteps, where he'd been standing and what direction they'd set off in. The back right side I figured from my hazy recollection, they'd headed in that direction.

A picture frame had been tore from the wall beside a confessional booth and as I pulled it back I discovered the hidden passage it had been concealing. It wasn't a tight squeeze which I figured was a good sign. Whichever way they had come that ginger giant would have had to fit too.

I scrapped the walls every now and again as I swayed on the uneven footing of the passage and only the sound of Waffles panting behind me kept me moving. I wasn't afraid to admit that I was absolutely terrified at the moment, I had been this whole time but it was different now. For the first time I had a choice, as terrifying as this island was I'd been surviving it and it was less frightening than the men holding my cousin at the moment, if I wanted to I could take an easier path.

Then again how could I ever justify that to myself, sorry Neji that extra bit of terror wasn't worth saving you from murder, rape or whatever horror they had in store for you. No, it just didn't stack up, and as much as I sometimes wished I could be I wasn't so selfish. I'd suffer a little more terror.

* * *

Sasuke's Pov-

"Were you bit?" I asked and watched quietly as the brunette's already pale features drained entirely of their remaining colour, several emotions that I couldn't even begin to interpret flashed through her eyes before she settled on for some reason panic.

"Bug bites Ten, do you have any puck marks or anything?" I elaborated for the queasy woman. She'd been shaky for just under an hour now after we'd made one last attempt to force our way into the church at my insistence. She had had to vomit at least twice in as much time but she insisted it was the food despite the fact that I'd eaten exactly the same and felt fine.

"No, I don't think so school boy. Fuck it, I'll be fine. We need to find some kind of shelter." Grunted Tenten forcing herself back to an upright position. She was stubborn I'd give her that, once the woman had decided on something it didn't seem even the forces of nature- natural or supernatural- could budge her from it.

We got another half an hour down the path before the sweaty woman couldn't manage to move any more. With a look that read of defeat and grief in equal measure she sagged against a tree trunk breathing erratically as her features scrunched up in pain. A mirthless laugh fell from her chapped lips as she glanced up at me…long lashes slightly damp.

"Well, what are you waiting for school boy…get going." She didn't speak very loudly and I had to ask her to repeat herself as I crouched down to her level pressing a bottle of water to her too dry lips. Her lower lip was swollen and red in patches and I realised her new found anxiety had caused her to chew at it quite fiercely.

"Get going? You make it sound like I've got somewhere I need to be." I joked lightly brushing her hair back from her face. I needed to be off this island I supposed but I wasn't exactly ready to abandon her, not so easily at least.

"Come on Uchiha, I'm done for…would you just…fucking fuck off!" She bit out turning her head away as her hissed the words without any kind of real anger or passion. A tear dribbled from the corner of her eye and I couldn't help but wonder, why? Did being vulnerable terrify her so much, the need for help that embarrassing.

"What's wrong with you Ten, I haven't been hanging around you this long just because you're useful. We're a team remember?" I tried but it did little to change the brunette's disposition as she seemed to turn even further away from me. Well that was fine, I could be a stubborn bastard myself.

She squeaked, more than a little caught off guard as I pulled her onto my back, hosting her quivering and surprisingly light frame into a piggy back position. I could feel her long hair, the few strands that fell loose from her ponytail, tickling the back of my neck.

"Sasuke…" It was strange hearing her say my given name, or sounding so delicate.

"Save it, if you have to you can view this as me kidnapping you." I threw over my shoulder. Sakura and Hinata dead and she thought I'd just leave her here to die alone in the woods, did I really seem like such a cutthroat.

"You're really not going to let me go are you?" she asked after a tense moment allowing her arms to link in front of me, seems I'd finally gotten through to her.

"Nope, not even if you get really fat or start singing show tunes." I returned hoping for a laugh, I didn't get one. Instead I felt her breath ghosting the back of my neck, her chapped lips rake over my skin and the light touch of what I thought was her teeth before…she pressed a soft kiss to my shoulder.

"Thank you…I won't let you go either." She offered back softly. For some reason I shivered and convinced myself there'd been a sudden chill wind and it wasn't a reaction to my partner's tone.

Not far ahead I spied shelter for the night in the form of a run-down factory building.

* * *

Sakura's Pov-

I was getting pretty tired of waking up expecting to be dead, more so even by the standards of this damned island. But at least one thing had brought me comfort in my sleep, the sight of a pale barely grown man and an ill brunette on his back. I'd be seeing Sasuke and Tenten again it seemed.

I cast a glance around the room I was in trying to recollect me thoughts, the city, the hospital, the elevator and the bloody hands and the groan of the hungry Dead. And yet despite what my mind told me I took in the sight of a florescent lit room, a rubber potted plant in the corner and an ancient TV hanging from a tray in the corner. More remarkably I couldn't seem to find a bite mark on me, an IV drip had been hooked up to me and my leg was cleanly bandaged and I suspected stitched too.

I glanced to the door as a familiar figure pushed his way inside followed by a less familiar one.

"You…what…how…?" I swear the questions were fully formed in my mind and made lots of sense but somehow my mouth had went rogue and was screwing them up.

"Quiet Miss Haruno, and stop fidgeting you'll reopen your wound." Ordered the tired Kakashi Hatake stepping around my bed to the small sink he pulled of his blood slicked disposable gloves and rinsed his arms free of any scarlet remains. Blood stained arms.

"You got quite a shock in the elevator…which I believe Anko owes you an apology for. At any rate I've managed to treat your leg reasonably well with the supplies on hand." Spoke the silver haired man throwing a dark glare towards the not even slightly ashamed woman as she done another impression of a ghoul's groan. I gave her a disgusted look.

"You really should have seen your face, brilliant." Commented the dark woman grinning broadly before Kakashi barked at her to go check on the others. She complied but not before flipping him the bird.

"I thought you were a teacher, not a doctor." I offered settling down into the comfy mattress less relaxed and more defeated. Not really much I could do now but wait and hope I healed enough before the next time this island tried to kill or fuck me.

"I'm neither." He answered in such a way that said a follow up question wasn't an option. He did however pull free my tiny pistol from the back of his belt offering it back to me without hesitation.

"Awful nice of you to give this back." I commented checking over the weapon reflexively.

"I already have a gun, and the thought of that woman with one terrifies me more than words can really do justice." One of those quirky couples it seemed, I decided not to comment.

"Who are the others?" I asked recalling how the man had rid us of his companion before, had the forcefully mysterious man set up some kind of makeshift clinic here.

"There were two already here when I arrived, Shikamaru Nara and Kurenai Yui, the former had been stabbed and the latter was nursing some nasty bruises. A woman named Temari showed up only a few hours before you did, she's locked up tight now…I'm not sure what she's been through but she had something in her system I'd give to elephants if I wanted to turn them psychotic." The mention of Temari put me on edge and made me that much more grateful to be reunited with my weapon. I considered telling Kakashi exactly what she'd been through but declined, he already knew what he needed to treat her and I didn't see why he'd need to know the rest. Rather…

"Does that door have a lock?" I asked sharply eyeing the thick oaken barrier.

"Locks automatically, you need the key to open it from the outside. Odd for a hospital but then again…" I followed the train of thought easily enough, you couldn't really claim anything in particular was odd here since well, everything was nonsensical.

"You seem pretty closed lipped Kakashi but I get the feeling you know more than you're telling so…where are we?" I asked hoping for at least more than a brushing off. The silver haired enigma scratched the back of his head and let out a sigh.

"We're on the Lucky Island. I don't know who runs it or why. There are theories, a testing ground for biological warfare, a survival competition for the watchers to bet on and a hundred others that there's never been a shred of proof for. I do know that people have escaped it before though, not many but it has been done." Somehow I doubted I would escape this place, maybe it had been the sights I'd already seen but even when I ran it logically through my mind I figured my chances at next to zero. Despite my injuries I hadn't gained any real information on the island, I still had no idea how to escape let alone the ability to reach it.

* * *

Hinata's Pov-

The florescent lighting of the passage stinging at my eyes had given me a migraine by the time I finished the trek of the secret passage, it seemed all I did anymore was walk these unholy tunnels. I'd found a trapdoor leading above at the end and had to hoist a slightly reluctant Waffles into the room before me.

It was…sort of nice in there.

There were soft plush couches lining three of the walls, a small stocked bar in one corner and some sort of raised platform in the centre of the room. I didn't pass much heed to the room itself as I blinked rapidly to get used to the dim lighting and made my way straight for the one thing of interest, the bar. There was no food with the exception of bloody peanuts and after I'd swallowed a handful of the dry roasted excuses for food I grabbed the biggest bottle of spirits, the lighter sitting neatly nearby and tore a strip from my jacket.

In a matter on moments I'd whipped myself up a useful little cocktail and shoved it into the back of my body armour beneath my jacket.

Whatever kind of preparedness I'd fooled myself into believing I had achieved all fell apart quite swiftly as I stepped out from the small room. Bright filtered lights danced over a colourful stage drawing my attention immediately to the figures 'preforming' there. Stripped and collared several ghouls jostled and lurched on the stage but never got far as thick chains and collars kept them bound to stripper poles. I fought the urge to vomit but barely succeeded as I took in the other figures in the room.

Reclined comfortably just before the stage and observing the ghouls trying desperately to reach him with barely contained amusement sat my cousin draining away the last dredges of some colourful cocktail. His eyes flickered to me for a moment and then back to the stage just as quickly.

"Neji?" Another figure drew my attention as I stepped deeper into the room numb to Waffles insistent growling. Behind the bar the giant Juugo finished the last touches on a glowing drink dropping a cheery miniature umbrella into it before he dutifully carried it to my cousin.

"It's good to see you my dear sister." He offered turning to me wearing an expression that was clearly not Neji, no there was too much hidden cruelty in his eyes for it to ever be Neji. And sister, that's something a stranger might guess. I raised my weapon training it on the imposter.

"What the fuck is going on here!?" I asked shrilly. I didn't swear a lot and it was strange to hear a curse tumbling from my lips but I thought this situation sure as hell warranted swearing, swearing and violence.

Four things happened all at once. Neji laughed, cruel pleasure crackling in his eyes. Juugo moved to disarm me grabbing and pulling the gun from my hands. I clicked the trigger reflexively before the weapon was lost but the shot hit him with about as much kick and damage as I'd expect if had just punched him. Lastly I heard a pistol click behind my head and a calm cold voice tell me to quiet down.

I stilled and Juugo pulled away my weapon tossing the gun with some mild disgust among the Undead strippers. My mind was going into panic mode before I heard a pained shout from the red head behind me. I spun seeing Waffles at his thigh gnawing aggressively at the flesh, the man's gun ached around lining up with Waffles and I threw myself against him in a tackle.

The gun skirted away but with it went my luck, Waffles only barely managed to avoid being stomped to death as the monstrous Juugo stepped in. The collie bounded off into the shadows as the man wrenched me free of his comrade. Sasori wasn't to his feet a single second before pain exploded across my face and I felt my nose crunch underneath his fist. Through the blinding tears, blood and shock I heard Neji give a low laugh raising to his feet to give me a pat on the head that was more insulting than affectionate.

"Poor choice my sweet dear, Sasori will almost certainly make it as painful as possible for you now." There was sadistic humour in my cousins stolen eyes and just about nothing at all in the invincible giants as the red head grasped a fistful of hair and dragged me back into the one of the backrooms.

It occurred to me latter that I should have been screaming.

As I hit the floor in the dark room I glanced up at the well-dressed sociopath. His gun clicked and fired and I felt pain explode across my stomach. Then came the sound of a zipper as I curled in around the pain in my abdominal and a low twisted laugh echoed.

"You bleed until you suck me dry." Higher thought died as my mind fell into blind panic.

* * *

Tenten's Pov

"Sasuke…what's wrong?" the Uchiha was shaking as he paced, we'd both slipped off almost immediately after finding this room. The door was heavy but it only locked from the outside. Still it was safe enough since like the first building we'd discovered, the school, the staircases had all been destroyed.

"How did you sleep?" He asked putting off the question and still pacing frantically, I saw him rake a hand through his hair and his left twitch before he flexed it attempting to fight down his nerves. For a moment I panicked before I felt my bandage was still clearly covering my wound.

"Fine until now. It's freezing you know." He had to, I could see his breath misting in front of him as he continued his bizarre behaviour. I beckoned him over to join me back on our makeshift bedding but he didn't budge eyes still wide and wild as if he'd been possessed.

"No nightmares tonight?" he asked stopping for the first time and fixing me a glance, a cold glance. Had that been what was bothering him, I suppose he was that bit younger so it wasn't surprising he'd be more susceptible to night terror. I raised myself up and moved to comfort him only idly aware that the stiffness and the sickness had seemed to pass…though my body felt more numb than before. I wrote it off as drowsiness.

"No, I'm a big girl school boy. But if you need someone to hold your hand I'll keep it a secret." His eyes turned even colder and I felt my worry really begin to settle in, the kid never got offended, that was how we worked. What had affected him like this? He clicked his tongue and began to speak and suddenly I recalled one of the reasons I'd gravitated towards him, the keen mind shining just behind his dark eyes.

"How about I tell you about my dreams instead. The first starred a cherry toned petite girl freshly escaped from a prison and trying to stay alive despite her very serious injury. The other starred an especially beautiful woman alone in this world except for a canine companion and staring down a fucking..." He trailed off his tone burning angry as he couldn't finish. Neither of us spoke for a long moment…we just stared into each other's eyes as everything unfolded in front of us. He knew Sakura and Hinata were alive, knew I'd lied and probably deduced that that had been for deeper reasons than to cover for inattentiveness. And I knew that he was going to leave me…the dreams said so, he was to see those two whores again and I wasn't which meant he either left me or he killed me.

"You can't go." I whispered just low enough for him to hear…I'd never heard myself sound quite so fragile before, I didn't like it.

"What else am I supposed to do Teagan? You told me they were dead, they very well might be now by the time I find them." His voice was less cold now, but final. Teagan not Ten not Tenten. And the way he said it, there was no maybe about it, the dumb kid was going looking for these two he wasn't going to try, he said he would find them.

"Stay with me, like you said you would, like you promised. We can get out, go anywhere, you and me." I pleaded moving forward for some kind of contact, I needed to feel him against me. But he pulled away, as if I'd burned him, as if my touch was something toxic and repulsive.

"You're…you're not that woman, not the one I made the promise to. Teagan…you abandoned yourself." He choked out turning away from me. And clever boy that he was he hadn't figured it all out yet, there was still one part in the mystery his dreams hadn't helped him piece together. I grabbed him from behind and as he began to speak, some refusal or final farewell on his lips…and I bit him.

Eye's wet I bit as hard as I could feeling my heart clench as he gasped out in pain. He didn't need to worry though, it would be over soon and it was for the best. This way we could be together…forever.

* * *

Sasuke's Pov-

Fighting the lessons ingrained in me by my mother I drove an elbow into my former lover's stomach breaking her grip on me and pushed her away.

As I twisted around trying to process the shock and horror of the situation I discovered only more awaiting me. The brunette had pulled away the collar of her jersey and the bandages beneath to show me the still bloody teeth marks beneath. She looked infinitely sad and smug all at once.

I drew my revolver.

"You gonna shoot me school boy? Why? We're the same now." She smiled serenely at the thought as my mind grappled with the weight she'd hit it with. Tenten was infected, Tenten had bitten me…so I was infected. Except…

"You haven't changed yet?" I whispered keeping my gun on her just in case, she still had her own on hand and I wasn't so sure anymore she wouldn't shoot me. Hell she'd already tried to do so much worse than that.

"Not yet, I watched it before, the Karin girl. I probably should have changed last night…while you were sleeping. But I guess it's going slower for me." She answered with a shrug leaning against a table casually as if she'd not just spoken the words she had. Expected to change in the night…

"Then it's not incubated yet, not fully developed." I spoke oddly happy to see some of the confidence slip from the brunettes eyes. She was following my logic well enough. Maybe the infection spread like a disease, a bite from anyone with it infected you. Or maybe it was more like a parasite, and it passed on eggs through the bite…if that was the case then a carrier couldn't infect someone until their parasite fully developed and they became a ghoul.

Tenten darted forward but I raised my weapon, she stopped in her tracks.

"Wow…you really are gonna shoot me school boy." She spoke with a laugh, a taunting laugh because she knew. She'd lied to me, tried to and damn well possibly infected me and betrayed me in every way I could possibly imagine…but I couldn't kill her. I couldn't shoot her.

"I'm sorry Tenten." She smiled misunderstanding the apology and the final use of her preferred name. As she dropped her guard I moved, exiting the room and slamming the door locked behind me. I heard her hit the door a split second later, howling in fury for a moment before I twisted away from the door and heard the retort of her weapon. The door didn't give though and still held fast as her weapon clicked empty and she began to roar again, and then bargain and then plead with me to let her out. To come back to her.

Shakily I moved through the corridors any and all thoughts of sleep abandoned likely for ever more as my mind attacked itself. I'd just abandoned my lover, locked her in a room to starve or surrender to her infection...whichever came first. Sakura needed my help, Hinata needed it even more and I…I needed a phone because I still didn't know for sure what I was. Could I help the girls and escape with them…or could I help the girls and then watch them escape without me.

A single ghoul greeted me as I reached the bottom floor and with a dangerous ease born of the dark emotions swirling inside me I scooped up a stray iron bar and caved in the thing's skull without breaking stride. The phone came second, I came second now. After what I'd seen the girls came first.

I walked all night but I could never seem to escape the sound of Tenten's voice rattling in my skull, pleading threatening…telling me she loved me, or asking why I hadn't found them yet, teasing me for going in the wrong direction. Calling me a failure, a coward, scum. And try as I might, I could never escape the itching in my veins as my mind constantly twitched with the knowledge that there was at least a fifty percent chance that I was now infected. That soon I'd be a ghoul.

* * *

Wow what a change of fortune, now Sakura's futures looking brightest among the survivors…though that's not exactly saying a lot is it.

And look at that, I'm sure everybody has lots more questions thanks to this chapter and precious few answers.

As usual if there's anything you'd like to discuss, any opinion you wish to express or question needing to be posed…or if you simply feel like offering a kind word and encouragement or pleading for a characters survival then please leave a review or Pm me, whichever's more appropriate.

Thanks for reading.

R&R


	13. Change

Title; Lucky

Disclaimer; Nope I don't own any of the Naruto characters.

Okay so the pairing will be SasuHina in the end, but don't expect me to avoid muddying the waters a bit first. Just trust me, in the end SasuHina.

Beware the timeline, I never said all this was perfectly chronological…or that I wouldn't skip minor things.

**JokerAtWork- **That cricket creature was on its last legs, Hinata didn't hit anything to kill it outright but it was fatally wounded at that point. Hence why it didn't follow afterward.

**Leyla**- Well at least I've got one for your tastes, I hope you can follow the language alright and continue to enjoy the twisted little tale.

**FallenRaindrops-** That's what this stories about, big ups and downs. And poor Hini had been doing so well before that. Well maybe a big up's still on the cards.

**ArtemisOfTheGoldenDistaff-** Um read and see, read and see, it's Orochimaru…um wearing Neji so to speak, read and see, there is a chance. She's been mostly by his side the whole time with a fairly limited window to be bitten out of view and he's not familiar with the infection process- only Sakura and Tenten saw Karin's Pov- besides that he was and still somewhat is very attached to her as both a lover and a lifeline and would be reluctant to firstly think she was infected and secondly believe that she'd hide it from him.

**Cheh-** Yep right off the deep end. Indeed…for now. Rape is just such a cliché on this site I have to say so you'll have to wait and see.

Chapter 13-

* * *

Hinata's Pov-

"Now, now, no tears honey." Spoke Neji's smooth voice as his hand cupped my chin and his thumb gently stroked my cheek. His smile was not a kind one.

"I think Juugo would like to kill you now." Dark pleasure twinkled in his eyes as he spoke but I barely processed the threat. Everything seemed to come to me through a filter, my eyes couldn't focus, my ears felt as if I was being held beneath the waves, my skin tingled with imagined hands and blows.

"Juugo doesn't make the decisions though." I still couldn't process anything but my own swirling thoughts as he pushed me backward, seemingly angered by my lack of response to his monologue. I hit the floor hard and felt my head bounce dully against the tiles.

"Listen to me now honey, I can feel that man at work here so I know there's someone watching from this wreckages eyes. I know you're watching." He leaned over me his eyes finding my own, and then looking deeper.

"I've finished my business here, but there is some time remaining. I would rather like to meet someone that devious bastard chose to help." I caught Juugo roaming behind my cousin, eyes hollow and empty like a prowling predators. I wanted to attack him, try to hurt him…but my body still felt like rubber and wouldn't budge.

"Who are you? What made you worth the visions? To survive so long…would you be a better fit?" He spoke with the airs of a melodramatic lunatic, a long smirk curled over his lips at the last question as his head swirled cocking to the left choppily.

"I'm a very curious boy you see. Now you have three days, if you fail to arrive I'll find some other way to amuse myself, perhaps I'll carve this cute bunnies face off, or allow Sasori his use of her…though that might be a little quick." He broke off his eyes glazing over as horrible methods of execution pulled him away from reality. He finally returned with a slow blink and a ghastly smile.

"Do come quickly honey, she won't be numb much longer!" His hand lashed out the tips of his middle and index finger striking my forehead. Focus returned in a rush, old pain and the wailing sounds of the club's music vibrated over my senses. And the little melody began to play again, sounding somehow less comforting than it used too.

* * *

Sasuke's Pov-

My head throbbed.

It hadn't been long enough to recover my senses or sooth the aches in my body but the thought of sleeping again couldn't find purchase in my mind. I glanced around the empty bar trying to push the thoughts of a stung out shell shocked Hinata and my time limit to the back of my mind. I couldn't really remember getting here. I'd stumbled through the black woods all night barely conscious, I remembered a dawning light through the rain and a red door and…I must have collapsed once I'd gotten inside.

The place seemed like it had been stripped down and searched recently. Wall hanging had been pulled free, presses and cupboards hung open and tossed but most tellingly every bottle behind the counter had been smashed…it was that last one that upset me the most at this moment.

I could still hear the howling wind through the cracks in the building and glimpsed the on-going tempest outside as I stepped behind the bar to begin an optimistic search. This island never was what it seemed to be, the Undead hunting the living, psychotic doctors and freak storms. Like everything else this bar was only a mirage, an atmosphere conjured by our captors for reasons I'd never really understand.

The cabinets were empty all along the bar but a glow of neon green and the hum of a processor caught my attention. It took a minute to find the monitor it attached to and another to get the device powered on. It seemed to be the bar's cash register but had seemingly crashed, only a black screen with a small blinking line in the top left corner greeted me. I always had meant to be a computer guy, learn to hack and all that, shame I'd never gotten around to it.

"Hello Alice?" The greeting had appeared in small print while I'd been lost in thought. I hit several keys hoping to respond or uncover the rest of the message, nothing happened for a moment before more words began to type themselves across the screen.

"Have you enjoyed your fall so far? If you seek to travel home, that plan is down the drain. But if you want to enter deeper, then you must find a pink kitten." I heard myself muttering under my breath and mentally berated myself for it. The word 'enter' was in italics and with nothing to lose I tapped the corresponding key. There was a click and the camouflaged cash drawer sprang open. Enough change to buy a coke and more curiously a nine millimetre and a spare clip greeted me, the computer powered down.

Pink kitten huh? More questions, more curiosities and more damn mysteries. I wanted to say I was upset by it, or frustrated but by this point all I could do was except this new twist with something less than surprise. With a sigh of mild annoyance I dropped the rounds in my pocket and stepped to the sink to splash my face and try and breathe some life back into my bones. I couldn't be that far from the church and finding Hinata.

Putrid amber water swamped the sink. With a grim determination I reached in the unplug the mess, my skin seemed to burn in the filth but the plug came free easily and the gunk washed away as I turned on the faucet. A glint drew my attention to the plug and the bright metal hanging from it.

"Down the drain huh? Helpful and annoying, what a strange combination." The keys jingled another mystery with the exception of the small anchor key chain attached. Maybe Sakura or Hinata knew something about boats, it would be pretty disappointing to crash my escape route after all this.

I caught sight of my reflection and wished I hadn't. I barely looked more alive than the ghouls I'd been fleeing for days now and the sight of my latest wound didn't inspire much confidence. The skin around the bite had turned a teal green and had begun to flake…which I naturally recognised as something skin doesn't traditionally do.

Was I infected, did this confirm it? I found myself putting my head down almost defeated for more rest, an hour and I'd pull myself together. I just needed one hours sleep that was all. Then…hell then I still wouldn't know.

* * *

Sakura's Pov-

Whatever kindness had inspired the mysterious Kakashi had seemingly evaporated soon after the aid was given. I found no signs of either him or the psychotic woman that hung over his shoulder once I summoned up the strength to explore the ward I was currently holed up in.

It looked more like an insane asylum I thought.

I'd seen Shikamaru and Kurenai passing through the halls like pale ghosts dripping ink, but they didn't approach me and I hadn't built up the nerve to try instigating a conversation with them either. So we just drifted past one another like darkened ships in the night.

It was the last occupant of the hospital that came to me as I was searching for fresh bandages. She just stood in the door way, bruises a lighter tone now and less skin exposed as she worked her mouth chewing a couple of different sentences over but never seeming to find the right one.

"What do you want?" my tone was cold and biting but I thought fair given our recent history, the blonde looked as if she'd been slapped but didn't quite scare off. She chewed one last sentence before finding one she had enough nerve to actually use.

"Can I help?" Her voice was crisp and hoarse as if she were choking up glass not words, I pinned her a look that I hoped conveyed the outrage I felt at the question.

"You expect me to take you up on that?" I whispered finding a roll of gauze hidden deeper in the press than I thought made any real sense. The other woman admitted she didn't with a soft 'no' stepping slightly deeper into the room and settling herself against a counter. I was keenly aware of my gun pressed cool against my hip and just how many seconds it would take to draw and fire it.

"What are you here for Temari, really?" she was too insistent for it to be all grief and repentance, no her eyes held the keen sheen of pragmatism in action.

"I wanted to warn you." It was probably a bad thing as my hand quickly flew to my weapon, her hands shooting high in surrender gave me pause.

"Not me Christ, I'm not…I'm normal now, clean." She was stuttering and I realised she fully expected me to blow her away. She was afraid of me as much as I was afraid of her if not more so, and not without reason. After what had happened in that hell pit few would hesitate to shoot.

"What should I be worried about then?" I managed to avoid adding an 'else' in there as I eyed up the statuesque blonde.

"The guy here, pasty pineapple head guy. He was hanging around your room last night after the cop left, paying pretty close attention to the door." She babbled out quickly but in a conspiratorial whisper, I lifted an eyebrow.

"He's probably evaluating things, it wouldn't take a lot for some of the dead to get up here." I reasoned. It had been a worry plaguing my own mind but I didn't have much of a choice. I couldn't walk at a steady pace let alone run in my condition so leaving was out of the question.

"That's not all. His arms, they're scratched up pretty badly, the kind he'd only get if someone got real desperate to protect themselves." Her eyes had a certain mad gleam to them but she did raise a valid point. They'd lost at least one member, and the older man Choji had been with them the last time I'd seen my phone. Temari stepped closer and a hand splayed out reflexively.

"Sorry, I mean…Look just can you keep arms distance, you're clean now but…" I trailed off unable to quite articulate the point I wanted to make, that drugs or no she'd almost harvested me for food and I couldn't trust her after something like that.

"Yeah, right, sorry. I just thought you should know is all." She slipped quietly out of the room and I was left with a whole new thing to worry about. I remembered the interaction between the three back at the beginning. I'd figured it was the younger one I should be worried about, but there was still something off there, something that the animal part of my mind warded me away from and the seemingly dangerous one, Kankuro, wasn't in the equation anymore.

What trouble had I wandered into now?

* * *

Tenten's Pov-

It was bright again, which was sort of annoying.

I hadn't expected to see the light again. I'd spent the last few hours just waiting, feeling my body grow stiffer and sorer until I couldn't move but everything hurt and I wished for the end, the change that would rob me of my life, my mind and this horrible hanging agony.

But it didn't come. Only the light arrived and a numbness that left me feeling cold and hollow, emptied out.

It was with the light that he came too. With a walk that belonged to a lizard on ice the silver doctor stepped through the creaking heavy door the low light twinkling on his thick glasses. I cast him a hazy look rather uncaring even as his pet trailed into the room after him, crouched on all fours it seemed more like an insect than a man. It's face had been cracked open to form pincers of its jawbones and its eyes were swollen and bloody. Few scraps of clothe hung to its body and its bones protruded like armour plating. I would have found it disgusting if I could be bothered to care.

"What's up doc?" I hadn't expected to be able to speak, my throat felt constricted and swollen but I guess I still had some quips in me. He hunkered down taking my chin in hand and twisting my head as he inspected I assumed the progress of my infection. His greasy smile fell into a forlorn frown and then a snarl.

"No, no, no. Just terrible." He gave a tut, it was good to hear all this cause with all the drama I was starting to feel self-conscious about myself. Not that I blamed Sasuke for…all this quiet contemplation had forced me into a careful review of our final moments, a horror movie I'd written directed and starred in.

"You've been seeing other people haven't you, you little tart. Ruined my careful measurements." He continued tugging at my collar to uncover the bite. I couldn't see it but I could smell the infection and rotted flesh enough to imagine the damage. I tried for a slap but my arm barely twitched.

"Still the mix could prove interesting. Where is the little one, the curious boy?" He asked his slimy smile returning as his dark eyes twinkled behind his spectacles. I managed that slap, though it only connected with his shoulder and rather limply at that to his disturbed amusement.

"Such a cliché you are little miss lover. You haven't killed him yet then? No, you'd at least have your scales before your psyche degenerated that much." He said a lot but the word 'scales' seemed to stick and something in my expression must have been telling, perhaps it was the horrified glance I threw his scaled chirping companion. Or the fact that I suddenly noticed the silver tufts of malting hair on the back of its skull or recognised the rags clinging to it as rather similar to what one of the survivors had been wearing. Kabuto noticed the look easily enough.

"No you'll be a different kind of beast than this one, something more unique and perhaps even notable…maybe more so than your little playmate even." He'd leaned in closer enjoying the benefit of his superior knowledge and half speak. Tease and hint at the threat and the danger but never say it outright.

"You stay away from him, you fuckin…" my tongue became too heavy to finish my threat and my throat seemed to close entirely in on itself.

"Not me lover, he's your prey." I couldn't offer up any objections, the stiffing had finished and I had the horrible thought that suddenly I knew what was happening to me. I was becoming a cocoon, a shell for whatever this disease was turning my insides into. I was going to hurt Sasuke? I didn't want to do that, I'd already hurt him too much. I wanted to protect him from this monster, not become the tool.

I didn't want to be a monster, I just wanted to be me, away from all this…

"Take her, and be gentle"

* * *

Sasuke's Pov-

I guess I'd taken a wrong turn somewhere down the line…or a lot of wrong turns.

As upset as I was at not finding the church I had to admit the sight of so much concrete and lights was comforting. Comforting and ominous. There were the little noises my senses quickly recalled as natural but my mind recognised as distinctly unnatural. A bird song cut the air whistling pre-recorded from a street mounted speaker. I could hear smooth jazz and hushed conversation broken by the ringing of a till or whistle of a kettle playing from the same jukebox in an empty café. Traffic churned about at a gruelling messy pace, impatient manikins seated behind the wheels of the automatic cars.

As I passed a parked yellow cab its radio sang at me in a new Orleans accent wondering where I needed to go. The entire city seemed alive but only in the sense a ventriloquist's puppet could be alive, it moved and spoke but it wasn't breathing. It offended some nerve cluster in the back of my mind and disturbed me immensely.

Sakura was here somewhere, unless there was more than one city like this on the island. I didn't want to take one of the cabs, some instinct warned me that it was too open, too noisy. And another kept me out of the shops. Each manikin I passed twitched in reaction, turning in some wooden greeting and each and every time I expected the plastic fake to assault me and then panicked that I might become complacent. It was maddening witnessing this strange parody of life.

It was growing dark by the time I found the hospital, exactly the same hospital as I'd viewed through Sakura's eyes days before. Though I couldn't help but wonder how late I'd slept earlier, how much time had I lost dazed and fighting a possible infection for it to be darkening already.

I was checking my nine millimetre as a precaution before entering when the dark haired woman came stumbling out bleeding from her temple and wild eyed but clearly human. I caught her mid stride.

"What's wrong?" I grit out as the panicking woman came down slightly, shaking her head dully.

"You, the boy from." She began recognising me from the starting house. I didn't have time for that though and shook her, hard…only a little bit because she called me 'boy'.

"What's in there?" I asked again. Had ghouls gotten up to the patients or had her companion done something, could the Warden be up there or an insect creature. Whatever the threat was it changed how I should go inside.

"Those things, they're holed up in one of the rooms. You have to help, I…" she trailed off teary eyed. I guess that meant regular ghouls then.

"How many?" I'd meant ghouls.

"Maybe a dozen, but they're hurt, they can't fight." Had more survivors turned up since I'd last tuned in. Nine more survivors up there, maybe they drew the ghouls with them. But…that was almost a whole safe house worth of survivors all together.

"Here, take this and follow me." I ordered handing the woman my spare weapon, her hands trembled but she took it anyway. I had to be careful here, the elevator was a bad idea what with the noise and I couldn't afford to take the stairs if there were many on the first floor. I needed to sweep the bottom floor first, if it came to a fight I'd have a multitude of escape routes and the noise would draw away the survivors assailants.

It sounded good, smart and clever and that only made me more worried.

* * *

Sorry, lots of travel lately, reunions and a lack of an adapter making my typewriter unchangeable led to many a delays. Hope you're enjoying the story thus far and still both confused and intrigued by the whole thing. Hinata's going to be a bit quiet for the next little while but I wouldn't give up hope just yet.

A question, who's most big baddish at this point. Who's the villain that's most worrying, the body snatcher, the doctor, the Warden or maybe someone else entirely.

R&R


	14. Choice

Title; Lucky

Disclaimer; Nope I don't own any of the Naruto characters.

Okay so the pairing will be SasuHina in the end, but don't expect me to avoid muddying the waters a bit first. Just trust me, in the end SasuHina.

Beware the timeline, I never said all this was perfectly chronological…or that I wouldn't skip minor things.

Chapter 14-

* * *

Sakura's Pov-

There was a chill in the room but that wasn't what woke me from my stupor, rather it was the dull rhythmic tapping on my forehead and the feel of a weight shifting on my stomach.

I came to my senses slowly, sluggishly taking note of my predicament. The open window, the open door, the pale brunette straddling my hips smirking inanely and the feel of bandages cutting off the circulation in my hands and feet as they pinned me to the bed. I tried to speak but the other occupant of the room shushed me quickly, fingers roughly digging into my jaw to stop me. Panicked eyes found my own.

"Don't, you have to be quiet or they'll catch you." She whispered conspiratorially leaning deeper so that her bangs scratched my forehead. I gave the shaking woman a second, as long of a second as I could in my panicked state of mind.

"Who'll catch us Kurenai? Can you untie me?" I threw out in my own whisper, rushed as I tried to both assess my situation and act to improve it in the same breath. Her amber eyes went wide as she nodded frantically reaching to untie my right hand. I only felt the scratch of her unkempt nails on my wrist before she paused, stilling as her expression went blank.

"…Kurenai?" I tried but she didn't react. Not immediately at least. After a second I felt her nails on my wrist scratching again but not in an effort to untie me. In a deliberate parody of gentleness she stroked along the inside of my forearm, across my bicep, over my shoulder and back to my chin. Her fingertips rested there gently for a moment just playing with my lower lip. Her expression had changed from frightened to ferial.

"Pretty little cherry blossom, trying to get away." I started to struggle again, certain now that it had been this polarised woman that was responsible for my predicament. The binds held tight despite my attempts and I began to grasp at straws. I could scream, there was a chance that Shikamaru wasn't an accomplice and despite her not being my first choice I wouldn't complain if Temari barged in to rescue me.

Something cool and rough slid along the top of my bare thigh and in a moment I caught a glimpse of it in the moonlight. Hanging loosely in the dark woman's pale grip was an ugly rusted scalpel. She continued to drag it over her own leg, over my stomach and chest until she reached my throat. In that moment I felt her other hand clamping down on my wounded leg, squeezing hard. My vision blurred as an agony that was like a searing fire burst to life in my thigh. A light had flared in her dull brown eyes and they looked almost to have been filled with blood they burned so red. I heard a heavy thump from somewhere in the building, Kurenai's grin turning itself into a snare for a moment.

"Shikamaru's began on the blonde, he's much too rushed though…" she commented drawing the flat of the blade along my neck the implication clear. There were more rumbles, crashes and a scream of agony. Kurenai didn't allow my attention to wander for long though, I felt the blade cutting into my arm as she eyes shun with a cruel satisfaction. She raised the old metal to her lips pressing a kiss to it that smeared her lips scarlet.

There was a crash as the room's door was forced open. Anger creased my captures pretty features for a moment as she twisted on my lap expecting to find Shikamaru. I heard a heavy whistle and felt the woman go tumbling off me as Temari rushed into the room swinging a single crutch like a bat. The older woman scrambled to her feet after a moment seeming feral and Temari swung again narrowly missing her but forcing the insane woman into the rooms corner.

As the tanned blonde advanced for another swing Kurenai made her move throwing her scalpel with a screech. I saw a spurt of blood as the blade cut a thin line into Temari's cheek and the dark haired woman went scrambling past her and out the door.

"Fucking bitch." The blonde continued to swear softly as she recovered the scalpel using it deftly to sever my binds. She didn't pursue Kurenai though, once I was free she plopped down clutching her ribs. Softly I pried her hands away and inspected her side, a nasty red mark trailed down her side and her ribs felt somehow crunchy to the touch.

"We have to get out of here." I spoke even as Temari seemed to lose more strength. I managed to hop to the fallen crutch and made use of it to take a lot of the weight off my right leg, it still hurt like hell though and I knew I'd need another one if I wanted to make it far…we'd both probably need some painkillers too.

"There's some of those things inside, they got that bastard when he was…" the blonde trailed off. I could see the tears in her shirt and pants and had an idea of what the man might have been attempting. I didn't ask how far he got, what he was doing when he was blindsided.

"Meds and food, then we take the stairs." I bit out stumbling a little. The elevator would be considerably less painful but could be a death sentence when it opened onto the ground floor. Temari went ahead as I limped down the corridor, she'd already filled a bag with dry food and water from the kitchen and was rifling around in search of the meds we'd need. Industrial strength anti-inflammatories and more minor pain killers mostly, we really weren't sure what else we would need now.

"You need something now?" asked the dirty blonde choking down a handful of tablets for her ribs. I refused, despite my leg screaming in pain I wanted as much of my senses as possible. I was quick to request a second crutch though.

* * *

Tenten's Pov-

The machinery chirped noisily as I came suddenly back to the conscious world. I was only half conscious though, the twisting tingling sensation in my lower body and the feel of the leather straps holding me aloft by my shoulders were too painful to be ignored and kept me swimming back to awareness despite my exhaustion.

I cracked an eye open vaguely aware that it was getting harder and harder to do so. The grey haired doctor wasn't in my line of vision for once probing me or draining blood but he wasn't far off either.

"What's up doc?" There was a rusty squeak as he twisted in his chair pulling his pale slack face away from the massive monitor. He looked displeased but no more so than usual and turned back to his computer. He was waiting for me to change I knew, so far I'd only clocked one of his creatures. The one that had been Suigetsu before the cruel doctor had stepped in. Either the others had been failures or they'd escaped, either way he was impatient for me to transform and add to his stock.

"The zombie bite fucked it up huh? Imagine that. It funnier that a monster saved me from your experiments or that brainless thing like that screwed you over?" I let out a bark of laughter that actually had some genuine humour in it. I was getting used to the pain and antagonising the doctor was rather enjoyable in a spitting on the headsman sort of way.

"Sliver pawn. Punish." The command was followed from nowhere as the creature moved from the shadows. My laughter turned to howls of pain as a powerful strike hammered into my lower back. My vision blurred and I tasted blood in my mouth but it got the doctor what he wanted, I resigned to keep my silence.

That the computer monitor was on it shed some light on the dark corners of the room that had been hidden when I'd been dragged here before. More than one white board had been covered in equations and formulas that I couldn't even begin to make sense of, I didn't pay them much mind. One board did catch my attention though. Pictures of both Sasuke and I along with the others whom had held up with the doctor were pinned along the top of the board. I couldn't help but wonder if this meant the doctor was not in league with whomever had designed our phones since he seemed to lack a live feed or info on others.

I was marked with my age ethnicity and uncomfortably accurate measurements, more uncomfortably though the title 'lover' with a bracketed 'corrupted' had been angrily scrawled after it. Sasuke's information had been added too though with the title 'virgin' in place of lover whatever that meant. I was pretty sure he was not a virgin. The other four had been entered with B as 'hunter' with a 'stage 1' entered after while Garaa and Suigetsu had 'pawn' printed beneath their names as 'stage 2' and 'complete' respectfully. Tsunade the youngest had been marked more dramatically than the rest of us as a 'matriarch' though, she lacked any stage number like Sasuke or I did.

I guessed the terminology had to do with whatever he'd done to us though it told me little except that maybe he didn't think much of Garaa, Suigetsu or Sasuke and might have thought I was slutty. Detailed instructions on how to undo the zombie bite and whatever poison the bastard doctor had used on me would be nicer. Why not throw in an escape route and a way to get Sasuke to forgive me while I was dreaming.

"I won't hurt him, not again." That I wouldn't do, whatever the kid and I had shared I owed him more than I'd given him and I wouldn't hurt him again. I didn't care what the doctor did to me or offered, it wasn't going to happen.

"Silver pawn. Punish."

* * *

Sasuke's Pov-

The gun clicked empty and I twisted on the dark haired woman blinking for a second as I took in her raised weapon and slowly falling grin, the trigger was pulled and clicked empty again.

For a moment I was unbelievingly happy about not checking the second gun over before sense kicked in and I tried to raise my weapon. I didn't quite make it in time though as she lunged forward in a tackle. The uneven ground and her weight brought me off my feet and I hit the ground hard. Her elbow jammed down on my weapon arm hard as she tried to keep it pinned, I saw a flash of silver and got my other hand up in time to stop her attack. A shard of glass flashed dangerously just before my face before she pushed down hard again, I twisted my arm at the last second and felt the edge cut into my cheek.

Looping my arm around hers would save my face but she was too fast and kicking her away couldn't work with her so close. Before I knew it her knife came down again and I barely managed to avoid it. I wasn't sure I'd last another attempt but I didn't have to. A leg roughly collided with the woman's midsection forcing her off my body.

The blonde standing above me offered a raised eyebrow before he lowered a hand instead the other holding a pistol trained on the woman. I didn't accept it.

"You always seem to have some girl pawing at you kid. I think I preferred the earlier ones though." He looked amused as he observed the woman gasping for breath. He'd kicked her pretty hard but I was still worried. I struggled for a name.

"Uzumaki?" It had been days since I'd seen him which wouldn't have seemed like much just last week but seemed like an eternity now. The last time I'd seen him he'd disappeared I assumed back to the other crazy blonde.

"I saw this place last night and Sakura, where are the others?" he asked as I brushed off the dust I'd gained and recovered the pistol the lunatic had dropped. It was a good question.

"I haven't found them yet. They were upstairs though, in the dream." It seemed my luck was turning as there was a click before both women in question stumbled into the hallway. Sakura looked to be the rougher of the two, she was leaning on the blonde and I could see spotted blood stains on her leg. They seemed more surprised than we did.

"Sakura." Something shattered in the small woman's façade and her head tilted down suddenly as a wet laugh broke from her lips. She'd dethatched herself from Temari in a second and skipped across the distance to me. Her nose and forehead hit my chest and her arms circled me tightly overwhelming me for a second before I wrapped my own around her. She smelled of disinfectants and just below that sweat and blood but I found it comforting.

"No hug for me." Naruto asked with a slight laugh but he still seemed tense and I noticed his attention was still unquestionably on Kurenai as my friend didn't so much let me go as she shifted her grip for better support.

"We need to go." I offered up shifting an arm under Sakura's armpit to support her, our height difference was too much to support her normally.

"Yeah but…what do we do about her?" asked the Uzumaki gesturing loosely toward the still crouched woman. It had been a question I'd been trying not to think about the last few moments. She was a danger to anyone else she'd encounter, a killer but what were we supposed to do with her, press her head to the wall and execute her. If it had been during the struggle when she'd had her knife and I had no other choice I could have, maybe, but…in cold blood.

"Shoot her." It was Temari that offered the hard line but I could see Sakura's eyes blazing in fury. I could feel her shaking beneath my arm and squeezed I hope to comfort her. Naruto looked taken aback and I recalled his soft nature.

"In the leg maybe, no her arm. So she can't hurt anyone." Sakura offered. It was softer only in the sense that it save one of us taking a life. In reality it was a crueller fate for the woman, without her hands she'd be easy prey for the things that roamed this island. A death sentence that cut out the hard choice or guilt but I couldn't exactly blame Sakura for not being a killer…I could still remember lowering my own gun and shutting a heavy door locking someone as dangerous behind me.

"And what do you think?" the blonde tried me last and I could have almost laughed at the hope in his bright eyes, who was this guy? Seriously, he'd went back for that cow that had almost been the death of Hinata and now he was trying to protect this psychopath. How many people had that much empathy in them especially in a place like this.

"You want to take her with us right?" I threw out hoping for some ghoul or nightmare to interrupt us and force the issue, there was no luck on that front. Sakura seemed shocked but the supermodel didn't, she'd picked up on Naruto's feelings too it seemed.

"I don't believe in vigilantly justice, or revenge." The blonde spoke up. He'd been a politican or something or the sort before and I could see that now, he wanted her arrested and brought to trail and in prison or rehabilitated, maybe he'd even accept execution if that was what the process led to but I didn't think him the type to like it. In the real world he was unquestionable right but here.

"We don't have restraints, half our party is injured and I doubt any of us have experience holding a prisoner let alone one that knows we won't kill her. She might kill us all but she'd at least kill one and we'd be back here again." She'd tried to kill me without hesitating, there was no way we could handle her. None.

"You let her go she'll kill other survivors or follow and attack us, you shoot her hands you're leaving her to be eaten alive by those things defenceless, you lock her in a room she'll starve to death." For whatever else it seemed shooting her might well have been the most humane thing to do and yet.

"I'll do it." Offered the tanned woman unflinchingly up for the task, Naruto stepped forward defensively but it was still obvious he was indecisive. His morals were in conflict with well his morals, I didn't pity him.

"Decide between yourselves." I decided suddenly that I didn't care as I realised Sakura needed to be somewhere else, there'd been too much noise here and when something came to investigate she couldn't run. The blondes seemed to catch the point.

"There's a boarded up restaurant with supplies two stops away on the automatic cars, we can regroup there after…." Naruto called as I helped Sakura limp away. I considered not regrouping but figured in the long run it was the only way things really could go well if I was…

"Do you have your phone Sakura?" My voice was thick and heavy even to my own ears but Sakura didn't question it. A soft 'no' crushed whatever hopes I'd inflated.

* * *

Sakura's Pov-

"Should we change the bandage?" the younger man's eyes were avoiding both my own and my bare leg rather awkwardly. There were quite a few questions I wanted to ask him and as many questions I didn't really want to answer, I wondered if that was what kept him quiet too.

Our shelter wasn't much but it was barricaded except for the heavy door we'd entered from, there were provisions and some spare melee weapons hanging about making this a much more generous checkpoint than the school had been.

"Maybe, don't really know." She'd struck it before Temari had gotten to us, for all I knew I needed new stitches and I doubted Sasuke or I was up to that task. We shared a shrug before the Uchiha went for supplies.

"Hinata and I got separated just after you were taken but I managed to find Ten…Teagan. We found some survivors on the top floor but they wouldn't move. We left, we...went separate ways and now I'm here." It was jittery and rushed and more than that I noticed the hick-up on Teagan. I guess I got to play the pushy bad guy first.

"Any idea what happened to Hinata?" It seemed the easier option to start with but the pale man's face darkened.

"I dreamed of her, trapped and in need of help. Teagan told me she was dead though, before she lost my phone." There was anger in his voice and I regretted not leaving well enough alone. Particularly when he applied the antiseptics.

"You don't trust her?" I asked cautiously.

"She said you were dead too." My reaction was a soft 'oh'. I felt distantly betrayed, maybe I'd be angry later after I'd processed it but for now something else had caught my attention as the Uchiha pulled aside the neck of his shirt. I just looked for a moment, at the angry red wound just barely beginning to heal. It occurred to me to draw my gun but I didn't as the dark youth went back to re-bandaging my leg. I could've came to the conclusion that he'd been bitten and Teagan had fled but I didn't, maybe because of what Sasuke had just told me or the way he said her name or any of the other little clues that told be the betrayal went further than that.

"She…she did that huh?" I received only a nod.

"I realised she'd been lying, I confronted her and then…" he trailed off only offering me another clue, that she'd been human when she'd…I started to laugh, uncontrollably I laughed sure that I seemed utterly mad. Sasuke tried to move back but I caught him by the collar and pulled him into an embrace.

I don't know if he joined in but before I knew it my laughter had turned to tears and I was weeping into his shoulder. All of it was pouring out of me now, the loneliness, the death, the ugly face of the living monsters on this god forsaken island. And more than anything I was crying because if the boy in my arms was infected I'd have to shot him…and I didn't want to do that.

* * *

You know what sucks, writers block. I'm really sorry folks this chapter's taken much too long and I've spent far too long with it open on the computer just staring at a blank screen. Hope it was worth the wait.

R&R


End file.
